Identity IV: Battle Phase
by MyAibou
Summary: Post canon. Yugi, Kaiba, Joey, and Mai face Ramesses in a final showdown, but there is a high ante for entry into this Shadow Game.
1. Prelude

**IDENTITY**

**Disclaimer:** If I owned _Yu-gi-oh!_ and its characters instead of Kazuki Takahashi, would I be posting this for free online? No. I'd be out on a trip around the world spending my royalty checks.

**Rating:** T for language, suggestive content, mild violence (of the battling-cartoon-monsters variety).

**Pairings and Warnings:** Yugi x Téa (x Atem). Kaiba x Kisara. Joey x Mai. Tristan x Serenity. Some Bakura x Marik (_shonen ai_ mostly; nothing very graphic.) Puzzleshippy stuff if you squint really hard. And yeah, I use the dub names. It's how I got to know and love these characters. But the continuity pulls from the dub, the sub, and the manga and exists in the same universe as all my other YGO stories. Sequel to the _Revival_ series.

**Acknowledgements: **I need to give a shout out to everyone's favorite super-special awesome _Yu-gi-oh!_ parodist, **Little Kuriboh**. His brilliant _Yu-gi-oh!: The Abridged Series_ changed the landscape of YGO fandom, and has become a canon unto itself. Screw the rules—we have Little Kuriboh.

* * *

**Part IV**  
**Battle Phase**

_**Battle**: a hostile encounter or engagement between opposing… forces._  
—Dictionary dot com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc.

* * *

**1. Prelude**

The air inside the underground Tomb Keeper's home felt dark and oppressive. Yugi knew there were Orichalcos stones here, and that was part of it, but there was more to it than that. For generations, this place had witnessed ritual after ritual performed on ten-year-old boys, as hieroglyphics bearing the key to unlock the Pharaoh's memories were carved into their backs. He suppressed a shudder, and Téa automatically moved closer to him, but her presence could only cut through the influence of the Orichalcos, not the memories of what had been done for the sake of his other self. For _his_ sake. He didn't have long to think about it, however. In the large ceremonial chamber just off the main passageway, Professor Julius was waiting for them.

"Well, well, the gang's all here," the professor said by way of greeting. "Or most of you, anyway. Arthur's granddaughter isn't joining us?"

"She's staying with her grandfather." Yugi let the reason why she needed to stay with her grandfather stay unspoken, but it hung in the air between them.

The professor, however, neither boasted nor repented of his colleague's condition. He merely looked slightly put out. "I see."

Kaiba snorted, impatient. "Let's cut the small talk, shall we? Where's Sara Drake?"

Professor Julius raised his eyebrows and regarded Kaiba with curiosity. "Missing your White Dragon, are you?"

"I have my White Dragons. They'll be kicking your ass momentarily, but in the meantime, where is Sara?"

"Patience, Mr. Kaiba. Not everything can transpire as quickly as your forbearer's rise to the throne."

"You'll find I have very little patience for blowhards who don't know we're not in ancient Egypt. Where is she?"

"She's here, of course." The professor nodded toward the wall behind him and a torch flared to life.

Yugi rolled his eyes at the theatrics—he probably had a remote to turn on the gas—and Kaiba started to open his mouth, most likely to make a sarcastic observation, but instead his eyes widened slightly and his jaw clenched. Yugi followed his gaze to where a figure was lying, sprawled unconscious, face down on the stone floor, white hair loose and strewn about her head.

In that moment, Yugi had no doubt she did indeed share the same _Ba_ as Blue-Eyes White Dragon—or at least the woman they'd seen in the Memory World getting stoned for a "demon."

Kaiba didn't say anything, but his eyes narrowed to slivers, and he glared at Professor Julius as if his gaze alone could wither the professor like Blue-Eyes' White Lightning Blast.

Professor Julius grinned, a nasty look devoid of any warmth. "There's my ante. And I see you brought yours as well."

"Excuse me?" Joey asked, the confusion evident in his voice despite its menacing undertone.

"Your ante. It's the stake you must put up to enter a game."

Mai scoffed. "Yes, thank you, Mr. Obvious. That still doesn't explain what the hell you're talking about."

"That's right. You never mentioned an ante when we spoke on the phone." Of course, Yugi knew many Dark Games as a matter of course staked the participants' own souls, but clearly Professor Julius had something more in mind. His small, dark eyes swept across their entire group.

And then suddenly Yugi understood. "No. Absolutely not. You wanted me and Kaiba; you got us. You came after Joey and Mai, so they're here to fight you, too, but that's it. You don't get anyone else."

The professor laughed. "My dear boy, it's too late for that. You've _all_ entered this crypt, accepting my challenge."

Kaiba and Joey, each catching onto his meaning, took a protective step in front of their younger siblings, but the professor waved his hand, and a dark, purple mist swirled around them, enveloping them in shadows even deeper than the gloom already pervading the underground chamber. Yugi turned to Téa to try and shove her back, out of the darkness, but he felt a barrier go up between them, almost blowing him off his feet as it pushed them apart, drawing the four duelists together towards the professor and pinning their four "touchstones" back against the edge of the murky purple mist, but still within its confines. Professor Julius then muttered something else under his breath, and several pairs of glowing yellow eyes and gaping black mouths appeared in the mist, hovering above them on his side of the field.

Furious, Yugi wheeled around to confront the professor. "What have you done?"

"Nothing but formally call the game you already agreed to by coming to meet me."

"I never agreed to you attacking our friends or using them as some sort of ante! And you've summoned a monster before the duel has even begun!"

"I haven't attacked your friends. On the contrary, this barrier will protect them from the rigors of the Shadow Game."

Yugi exchanged glances with his three teammates. _And it will also keep them from staying in contact with us to protect us from the Orichalcos…_ "And the monster?" Yugi nodded toward the glowing eyes.

"Souls of the Forgotten. One of my special guardians. You have guardians of your own, am I correct?"

"Which you've locked out of your Shadow Games!"

Professor Julius shook his head as if disappointed. "I don't see how your inability to summon your own monsters is my problem. You merely need to know how, and your guardians can come to you to help oversee the duel as mine will. They will not affect your Life Points for the purpose of the game, however."

Yugi thought of the battle they fought with the professor's henchman, Evan Haines, and how he'd used Reshef the Dark Being to attack and almost kill Téa outside the confines of the conflict.

As if reading his thoughts, Professor Julius continued. "And they cannot attack your friends behind the barrier."

"But they can attack us," Mai said, a statement rather than a question. She looked at Yugi. "We could always try to summon our guardians. We don't know for sure—"

"No way." Joey shook his head. "When Serenity tried it, she blew us all across the room. I'll bet the professor here would just love it if we gave ourselves concussions and couldn't duel."

Professor Julius merely smiled in response. "As for the reason you brought your friends in the first place, you needn't worry about the Orichalcos. The barrier also shields us from its effects."

Yugi frowned, but he had to admit he no longer could feel that odd pressure that usually came with proximity to Orichalcos stones. "Nevertheless, _Professor_—" he spat the word like an epithet— "no one agreed to putting their souls at stake."

"It's okay, Yugi."

Yugi looked over his shoulder to where Téa stood, her hands pressed up against the invisible barrier as if she were standing at a window. And yet, he could hear her as clearly as if there was nothing between them but empty air. "We are _all_ a part of this, not just the duelists. Remember?"

The others nodded in agreement, Tristan putting voice to their shared sentiment: "Just kick his ass and be done with it."

Yugi closed his eyes, hating this, hating putting anyone but himself at risk, but he relented. Kaiba and Joey, however, were not persuaded. "Let my brother go, you slimy sack of pond scum," Kaiba demanded.

"It's okay, _Nii-sama_. Just beat him and get Sara back. And Rebecca's grandfather."

Yugi turned back to face Professor Julius. "Everyone you have harmed will be returned when you lose."

"I will not lose, but yes, that is the arrangement," he agreed. "I believe Odion and Ishizu Ishtar are dueling to determine the fate of their souls and that of Marik Ishtar, but all the other _living_ souls would be returned. My _dear friend_ Arthur, my young protégé…"

Yugi closed his eyes, understanding the implication. Atem's and Seto's souls were not part of the bargain. He doubted restoring them was in Professor Julius's power even if he wanted to. But that didn't matter—he was sure his original plan to substitute his body for Atem's would work once Marik and Bakura did their part and restored Ishizu. He just had to do _his_ part and make sure Ramesses was eliminated as a threat. Opening his eyes, he gave a curt nod to the professor, accepting the terms.

Kaiba, however, was still not satisfied. "And what about your 'young protégé.' What did you do to her?"

Yugi then remembered Sara and looked where she had been lying on the floor. She was no longer there in the space beside Julius, but he soon spotted her a little further back at the far edge of the purple murk, probably divided from Julius the same way Téa and the other non-duelists had been divided from him, Kaiba, Joey, and Mai. She still was lying face down on stone floor, long white hair fanning out from her head.

Professor Julius waved his hand dismissively. "Reshef the Dark Being." When Kaiba looked ready to strangle him, he merely laughed. "Oh, don't look so distressed, my dear Mr. Kaiba. Your precious vessel for the White Dragon is unharmed. Reshef controls her soul, but I control Reshef. It is but a small matter for me to bring her back."

"Under your control." Kaiba spat the words more than said them.

"If I so wish. But I have no use for her beyond my ante and keeping her separated from your White Dragon, and sending her soul to the Shadow Realm permanently when I win will do that job. In fact, I'm rather anxious to see her reaction to this turn of events. She was always such an clever pupil."

He muttered something else under his breath, and Sara began to stir. Slowly, she sat up, groaning.

Kaiba's breath hitched. "Sara…"

Her eyes cleared and she jumped up. "Seto? Professor Julius?" She stepped forward, then stopped suddenly as if she'd run into a glass wall—the same barrier that separated Téa and the others from him, Yugi figured. Sara put her hands up, pushing against the invisible wall locking her away from the rest of them. "What…?" She seemed unable to finish her question, clearly confused beyond words.

"Welcome back, Sara. Please let Mr. Kaiba know you are quite well. He seems to be concerned about your well-being."

"My…?" She looked from her mentor to Kaiba, then back. "Professor? What's happening? I don't understand. You and Professor Hawkins… those men that attacked us at my flat—"

"My servants. And this is a Dark Game, my dear. You will quite enjoy this, I think. Living the ancient games is so much more exhilarating than merely studying them. Other than the fact that when I win, your soul will become part of the shadows, that is."

She frowned, her expression growing darker. "I thought all of that was 'romantic rubbish.'"

Professor Julius smiled. "No, my dear, I assure you, the Dark Games and the power of the Shadow Realm are quite real. Believing that the power should be constrained in order to protect the world, now that is romantic rubbish."

She stared at him, her mouth agape. "It was you! _You_ vandalized the tombs? You…you desecrated the bodies?"

He looked at Yugi and Kaiba. "I told you she was a clever student."

"You're an archeologist! You are charged with protecting the artifacts of ancient history!"

He smiled at her, shaking his head as if he were a kindly grandfather amused at the innocence of his young grandchild. "History is more than just what existed in the past, Sara. It's vital and _alive_. It's meant to inform the present, yes, but also to be used by it. Not buried in books to study."

She glared at him for a prolonged moment, furious. "What about Professor Hawkins?"

"You'll have to ask my opponents here. They seem to have absconded with him."

She turned to look across the field as if just remembering the others were there.

"He's in the hospital," Yugi told her, clenching his fists and trying not to think about what his grandfather had told him.

"Is he all right?"

"He will be." He clenched his fists harder, his knuckles turning white.

She bit her lip, and her eyes left Yugi and found Kaiba. The two of them exchanged looks that Yugi couldn't interpret, but neither one of them said anything. Kaiba gave a slight nod, as if satisfied that she was in fact unharmed, then directed his gaze back to the professor, any softness that might have been there turned to steel. "The prelude is getting dull. Let's get on with it."

"Yes, always the man of action, aren't you, Mr. Kaiba? But you're right, we should get on with it. First, however, let's clarify the rules of the engagement, shall we? After all, this is quite an unusual duel. Tag dueling usually involves two against two, not four against one."

"You're the one who invited us to your little party," Mai said, her arms crossed. "If you didn't want all of us to play, maybe you should've stayed out of our dreams."

"Oh, I am very pleased to face all of you so-called Shadow Duelists. In fact, I'm rather disappointed that Arthur's little granddaughter declined to join us, but no matter. But if you think that your advantage in numbers will extend to the monsters you control, then you are sadly mistaken. You have only one battlefield before you, meaning you will be allowed five monsters _total_ on your side of the field. It will be up to you to decide whose monsters."

"What about your extra friends there?" Joey nodded towards the glowing yellow eyes hovering over the professor.

"They are not actually on the field. As your guardians will not be, should you choose to summon them."

Yugi ignored the taunt, instead focusing with a grimace on the monster limit on their side of the field. That meant each of them could call only one or two monsters, which would limit their ability to use their separate decks' strengths to their full potential. On the other hand, they still had four decks to Professor Julius's one, and four turns for every turn he would take, which would give them a significant advantage, so long as they worked as a team. The main question was, could Kaiba put aside his need to control every aspect of the game and rely on the strengths of his teammates to add to his own? Yugi looked at Kaiba, the question in his eyes, but Kaiba did not look back at him.

"What about spells and traps?" Mai asked. "Monsters are all together on one field, but spell and trap zones belong to each individual duelist."

Professor Julius nodded his concession. "You may each play five spells and traps. But in exchange, I must insist on Asian rules. When one player's Life Points hit zero, the entire team loses."

Yugi glanced at Kaiba again, knowing he hated to tie his fate to anyone else's that intricately. As expected, Kaiba didn't look happy, but he said nothing, and Yugi bowed his head in agreement on behalf of the whole team.

"Good. Then shall we begin?" He looked at Mai. "Ladies first, don't you agree, gentlemen?"

"Let's duel," Yugi said with another nod.


	2. Scholars and Kings

**2. Scholars and Kings**

The field within the dark mist was different than any Yugi had played on before. An area in the center stood out in relief against the shadows, slightly elevated, reminding Yugi a little bit of the dueling arenas they'd used at Duelist Kingdom and Kaiba Land before Kaiba had perfected his Duel Disks, making holographic dueling portable and the arenas obsolete. On either side of the field, one to Yugi's left and the other to his right, were two areas set aside for the players to stand, with the field spread out between them. There was no place for them to play their cards as there was in an arena—they'd obviously still need their Duel Disks for that—but it was clear nevertheless where they were to stand.

Across the field from them, Sara was pushing against the barrier as if she were an eager audience granted box seats to a world championship event. Her expression belied the image, however; she looked confused and angry and was more trying to feel out the dimensions of her invisible prison than pressed against it in anticipation of a good show. Professor Julius—"Ramesses"—was walking from his place in front of Sara to the elevated area on Yugi's left. His Souls of the Forgotten preceded him, hovering above and behind the playing area like some sort of rear guard.

On their side of the field, the four duelists spread out in a line in front of their spectators, forming a sort of "bench" where they would wait for their turn to play. Kaiba was on Yugi's left, Joey on his right, and Mai on Joey's right.

Mai strode up into the playing area on the right to draw her first six cards. She summoned Amazoness Chain Master and set one facedown spell or trap card before stepping down. Amazoness Chain Master materialized in front of the playing area, while the facedown card appeared in front of her space in the "bench" area. Yugi raised his eyebrow and looked at Kaiba, wondering about the capabilities of the Duel Disks. As four-on-one duels were not standard protocol or even something Yugi had ever seen before, there would have been no reason for Kaiba to program such a feature into his disks, which meant the Shadow Game itself was controlling the placement rather than Kaiba Corp technology. Kaiba remained impassive, however, and Yugi couldn't tell if the new twist to his Duel Disk technology surprised him or not.

Joey went next, adding two more monsters to their side of the field by summoning Marauding Captain and then using its special ability to special summon a second level four or lower monster, Panther Warrior. This did bring a reaction from Kaiba, and Yugi glanced at him as he grunted in disapproval. With only five slots available in which they could summon monsters, it would naturally irritate Kaiba to have Joey of all duelists use two of them, even though it did make more monsters available to sacrifice for higher-level monsters. Yugi suppressed an urge to roll his eyes and instead shot Kaiba a look of warning. _Play like a team or we'll all lose._ Again, Kaiba did not react.

Joey set one trap or spell card face down, then stepped back. "You're up to bat, Yuge. Knock one out of the park."

Yugi gave a nod of acknowledgement to his friend, although both of them knew there could be no knocking anything out of the park until Professor Julius had his first turn. Stepping up to the field, Yugi looked at the five cards he'd drawn when Mai started the duel: Polymerization, Obnoxious Celtic Guardian, Kuriboh, Dark Magician Girl, and Mirage Spell. A good hand to start with. He drew one more card—Unity. Not necessarily a card he could use right now, but he took it as a good omen. Unity was an instant spell card that would allow him to take the combined defense points of all the monsters on their side of the field and add it to one monster's defense points, each member of the team lending its strength where it was needed most. Exactly the spirit they would need to win this duel and defeat Professor Julius.

The combination of cards he did play also felt like a good omen to him. He summoned Obnoxious Celtic Guardian and set Mirage Spell facedown. Obnoxious Celtic Guardian was one of his other self's standard monsters, while Mirage Spell was his own card, one that had been key to his victory in the Ceremonial Battle, which he could finally remember now that he'd gotten his own memories back. Both sides of himself, represented not only in his deck, but also on the field in his very first move.

"Are you going to spend all day contemplating your hand, or are you going to duel?"

Yugi threw an exasperated glance in Kaiba's direction. "I end my turn. You're up, Kaiba."

"About time."

As Kaiba passed him on his way to the field, Yugi reminded him, "We're a team, not rivals."

Kaiba huffed out an impatient breath. "So help me, if you start another one of your teamwork speeches…"

"I'm just reminding you."

"I don't need to be reminded."

Kaiba stepped into place and drew, barely pausing to look at his cards before summoning Vorse Raider and setting three cards facedown. He looked up at their opponent. "Okay, _Professor_, let's see if you're really any good, now that you're not hiding behind your lackeys."

Professor Julius narrowed his eyes, then made a quick motion with his hand. With no other warning than that, Souls of the Forgotten began a low moan that rapidly increased in pitch and intensity, until they rose up and swarmed Kaiba, attacking him with some sort of violet bolt of energy. They weren't powerful—900 attack points, if Yugi remembered correctly—but it was enough to knock Kaiba backward, almost toppling him from the elevated player's area.

Sara yelped and pushed against her barrier as if trying to get to Kaiba, and Mokuba cried out in horror. "_Nii-sama_!" There were gasps from Tristan, Serenity, and Téa as well.

Yugi took a step towards the playing field, but Kaiba straightened, rubbing his arm and looking supremely annoyed, but not badly injured.

Joey cried out in protest. "What the hell was that? Not that I don't like seeing Kaiba get slapped around some, but we're dueling here, and we've got five monsters on the field! You can't attack directly!"

Kaiba glared at Joey. "I don't need a second-rate hack defending me." He whirled on the professor. "What's the matter? You can't win playing by the rules?"

Professor Julius merely smirked. "You'll note your Life Points are unaffected. As I explained before we began, Souls of the Forgotten are merely my guardians. You would be well advised to think before you speak. They don't suffer insults to their master gladly."

Kaiba barked out a haughty laugh. "You are the worst kind of coward, you know that? I'd even rate Wheeler here above you, and that's about as low as you can get. He's a loser and a hack, but even he learned how to fight for himself. Eventually."

"Gee, Kaiba, such sweet talk. This mean we're engaged?"

Kaiba sneered at Joey, but Professor Julius glowered at them both. "You think your childish antics are amusing, but this isn't one of your infantile tournaments. This is a true battle of ancient powers, and I come from the _Ba_ of the greatest pharaoh that ever lived. You will learn your place."

Yugi narrowed his eyes, contemplative. "So you say."

The professor turned his gaze from Kaiba and Joey to Yugi, his small eyes dark and malevolent. "You doubt my connection to Ramesses?"

"Well, putting aside the questionable claim that Ramesses is the 'greatest pharaoh that ever lived,' why shouldn't I doubt your connection to him? Or them, actually. There was more than one pharaoh who went by that name, and you haven't exactly given us any specifics. You're the one who always claimed scholarly objectivity over 'romantic' notions. As a _scholar_, I haven't seen any evidence supporting your claim."

For a moment, Professor Julius looked like he might lose control. His face reddened, and a fire burned behind his eyes, causing Yugi to brace himself for an attack from Souls of the Forgotten. But it was only a moment, and then he regained his composure and returned to his cold, lethal glare. He drew a card and looked at his hand. "You are hardly a scholar, young Mr. Mutou," he said as he played Pot of Greed and drew two more cards, examining them as he spoke. "You have drawn some acclaim in the field in much the same way you have in the game of Duel Monsters—by riding the coattails of someone _else's_ accomplishments." He summoned the monster Ameba to the field, a level-one monster with only 300 attack points, causing Yugi to wonder what special abilities it had that would make it more venerable than it appeared.

Professor Julius continued his monologue without stopping. "You think you understand the history and the culture of ancient Egypt because an accident with dark magic brought the spirit of an inconsequential and virtually unknown pharaoh into your life. You think you are a gifted duelist for the same reason. But you are merely an ordinary and somewhat unremarkable young man, with no insight of your own to offer." He played the magic card Creature Swap, which allowed him to trade his Ameba for a monster of their choice. As Joey's Marauding Captain was their weakest monster on the field, it didn't take much discussion for them to send that monster to Julius's side of the field while Ameba settled in its place. Its special ability soon became clear—when control of it shifted from its owner to his opponent, it inflicted 2000 points of damage to its new controller, thus halving Joey's Life Points to 2000.

Joey grunted as he took the physical force of the direct damage as well, and Yugi cringed at his friend's pain. Behind them, he heard Serenity suck in her breath. "_Onii-chan_!"

Professor Julius barely paused. "I, on the other hand, have spent a lifetime studying ancient Egypt. I have discovered texts and scrolls Ishizu Ishtar only dreams of glimpsing. And when Maximillion Pegasus introduced the 'new' card game that he 'created,' I knew before the notion even crossed Arthur Hawkins' feeble mind that Pegasus was merely re-introducing the ancient Shadow Games. I was searching for the Millennium Items before you even contemplated solving the Puzzle, let alone had any clue the power it contained."

"Well then, you were exceptionally bad at it, weren't you?" Kaiba said. "I mean, I couldn't turn around without running into some nutjob waving a Millennium Item around, and I certainly wasn't looking for them."

The professor shot an angry look in Kaiba's direction, then ordered Marauding Captain to attack Ameba, giving Joey 900 additional points of damage to his Life Points. The destruction of a monster on their side of the field tripped one of Kaiba's trap cards, Flat Level 4, which allowed both him and his opponent to special summon one level four monster from their decks in attack mode. Professor Julius summoned Pyramid Turtle, with 1200 attack points, and Kaiba summoned the 1700 attack-point Kaiser Seahorse.

"Kaiba has a point," Yugi said evenly, returning to their conversation. "And none of those things you think you are makes you even remotely connected to the _Ba_ of Ramesses. _Studying_ kings isn't the same thing as _being_ one." Absently, he slipped his free hand into his pocket to touch Atem's three heirlooms. "I don't have a connection to Atem just because I _studied_ him, and it wasn't even because I solved the Millennium Puzzle. I'm connected to him because I came from him. And he from me. And I only knew it because I experienced it. Kaiba saw the priest Seto with his own eyes and still doesn't completely believe he is connected to the past. Ishizu, my grandfather—neither one of them _knew_ their souls were connected to the sacred guardians of the pharaoh's court until we lived out a recreation of the past through Atem's memories. So how is it that by merely studying ancient Egypt, you came to believe that a part of your soul _lived_ it?"

Professor Julius played the magic card Hinotama, choosing Joey to once again receive the damage to his Life Points, bringing him down to a mere 600. Yugi chewed on his lip in frustration and Kaiba gave Joey an irritated glare, but Joey, who always seemed to do his best dueling when he had a major Life Point deficit, stood his ground and glowered at Julius with fire in his eyes.

Tristan pounded his fist on the barrier. "Shake it off, man, shake it off."

The professor picked up where the conversation had left off, answering Yugi's question. "Because only I was able to discern what 'dark power' Ramesses the Great had discovered in his efforts to reopen the Shadow Realm after the Nameless Pharaoh and his even less noteworthy successor hid away the Millennium Items, blocking entry to the Dark Games from those who came after them. Only I was able to partner with Dartz and submerge myself in the power of the Orichalcos. Only I was able to correctly use it to access the darkness marked on your souls from the Shadow Games you played. Only I was able to complete the work Ramesses the Great started three millennia ago."

"So in other words, wishful thinking," Mai said, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "You're no different than every other blowhard I've met while dueling or gambling or just, you know, being me. Because you _want_ to be something, you think you are. But I'm not seeing it, hon. I just see a sad little professor who wants to be important, but really is nothing more than a guy who's done a little too much reading."

Professor Julius clenched his jaw, but said nothing in response to Mai's taunt. He finished his turn by setting two trap or spell cards facedown, then as Mai stepped up to the field to begin her turn, he muttered under his breath again, and a new monster materialized behind him alongside Souls of the Forgotten. This one looked like something straight off the cover of an American romance novel—a muscular, human-looking man with long blond hair and no shirt. His legs, however, were made of flame, and he was carrying a giant scythe. He flew at Mai, slashing at her with his scythe and knocking her back much further than Souls of the Forgotten had done to Kaiba.

Serenity shrieked and Joey called out Mai's name as he rushed toward her, but Professor Julius waved his finger like a teacher scolding a wayward student. "Uh-uh-uh. It's not your turn, Wheeler. Only Ms. Valentine may be on the field until her turn is over.

"You son of a bitch!" But Joey stopped short anyway. "Mai?"

She nodded, holding up her hand. After a moment she spoke. "I'm okay. Takes more than a little level four monster to bring me down." Her tone was a little more haggard than her words, however.

"What is that thing?" Tristan asked from behind the barrier. He had his hand on Serenity's shoulder to keep her from banging her fists in frustration on the invisible wall separating her from Mai.

"Looks like Darkfire Soldier Number One," Kaiba answered. "1700 attack points."

Yugi was furious. "You stand there claiming to be a pharaoh of Egypt, yet you duel with no honor. You're no king. You're not even worthy to be the lowest servant in the outer court."

The professor's eyes narrowed to slits. "When the shadows are about to take your soul, you'll know who is worthy."

"Yeah, well, talk is cheap, your majesty," Mai said, seeming to have recovered from the attack. "And right now it's my move."


	3. Drawing Strength

**3. Drawing Strength**

Sara kept expecting to wake up. This was just another strange dream to add to a lifetime of strange dreams, even if she wasn't a dragon in this one. She would wake up and be sitting on the plane to Cairo, all of this weirdness the result of nothing more than bad airline food. She hadn't really been kidnapped right in front of her own flat. She hadn't really awoken in some kind of weird mist, locked like a mime in an invisible box. Her mentor wasn't really the one who had desecrated the tombs, and he wasn't trying to use a card game to determine the fate of anyone's soul.

And Seto wasn't here looking for her.

She knew none of it was a dream, however. She couldn't quite understand exactly what was happening, but she knew it had something to do with those "Shadow Games" Yugi and Seto had mentioned before. And even though the sum total of her knowledge of the game of Duel Monsters came from the three and a half games she'd played with Seto and Mokuba the first night they'd met, she knew that these side attacks, first on Seto and just now on Mai, were not part of the game. And those Duel Disks of Seto's—she knew they made some pretty realistic holograms, and he'd explained that in a tournament, players would actually feel the attacks, but she was fairly certain that they shouldn't hurt the way they obviously did. Mai still looked a little shaky as she started her turn, and Seto…. Sara looked in his direction. He was watching the game intently and seemed to be recovered from that bizarre attack, but she couldn't shake the image of all those… _things_ surrounding him and zapping him with some sort of purple bolt of _something…_.

She shook her head, trying to focus on the game, trying to understand what they were doing here. Trying to understand how her mentor could be the villain of the piece.

Mai sent her monster, some sort of Amazon warrior with a huge chain weapon, to attack whatever that monster was that Professor Julius had taken from Joey. The professor grimaced, but just a little—not like when Joey had lost points. She could see the scoreboard on his Duel Disk go down from 4000 to 3700. Mai slotted a card into her Duel Disk, and the image of a giant facedown card appeared across the field from Sara next to the card Mai had placed there on her last turn. Then she left the playing area, high-fiving Joey as he passed her on his way to take her place. Joey's sister called out, "Way to go, Mai! Go get him, Joey!" Tristan and Téa added their own shouts of encouragement to the mix.

After drawing a card, Joey called out his move. "I sacrifice Amazoness Chain Master so that Panther Warrior can attack Pyramid Turtle." She wasn't sure what that meant, but Mai's Amazon disappeared, and Joey's black cat-man monster attacked the professor's giant tortoise with a pyramid on its back.

The professor grimaced again, his point counter going down to 2900, but then he smiled, and Sara shuddered. How was it possible the man she'd studied under for six months could look so _evil_? "Whenever Pyramid Turtle goes to the graveyard as a result of battle, it triggers his special ability, allowing me to special summon any Zombie-type monster from my deck so long as it has 2000 or fewer defense points. I summon Ryu Kokki, a level-six monster with 2400 attack points and 2000 defense points."

Joey groaned, clearly not happy about the disgusting thing that appeared where the Pyramid Turtle had been. It looked like a huge beast of some sort, but was composed entirely of human skulls. Sara shuddered again.

Yugi was up next, and he and Joey bumped fists as they passed each other. Sara leaned forward, anticipating some sort of grand play since Yugi was the world champion, but all he did was sacrifice his elf-looking thing to play the pretty blonde magician girl that Sara recognized as Téa's favorite card. He glanced over at Téa, and Sara saw her give him an encouraging smile, then he turned his attention back to the game, put one more facedown card in the slot that wasn't for monsters, and ended his turn. Sara couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.

The professor echoed her thoughts, only with a little more malice. "I see that I was correct in my appraisal. Like your scholarship, your vaunted dueling skills seem to be more based on the Nameless Pharaoh than anything you bring to the table, Mr. Mutou. I knew from playing you when we were on our dig last year that you weren't overly impressive, but I'd hoped you'd be more of a challenge in a real Shadow Game with such high stakes."

Yugi paused from his walk away from the playing area to level a sharp but completely unruffled look at the professor. "And yet, I always managed to beat you. The truth is, _Professor_, I don't feel the need to constantly announce who I am and how I fit with Atem with dramatic moves and pets whose only purpose are to make me feel self-important." He waved his arm in the direction of the extraneous creatures behind the professor's field of play. "I know who I am." He paused, a smile forming on his lips. "Actually, I suppose I should thank you for that. Your re-creation of the Ceremonial Battle proved most illuminating."

Sara cocked her head, trying to work out what it was about him that seemed… _wrong_ wasn't the word, but _different_. He was neither the quiet, sweet person everyone had described him to be before she'd met him, nor was he the angry, morose young man she'd gotten to know over the past week. And there was a confidence to him that was unlike the way he'd been barking orders at the others all week, too. He seemed… at peace somehow, despite the odd circumstances and the fact that he was clearly very angry with the professor. _He acts like a king._

His remarks seemed to infuriate the professor, however, and without warning, the things that had attacked Seto before, the wailing, ghost-like things made out of the same purple shadows that surrounded them, blasted Yugi with their weird violet energy bolt. Yugi doubled over, and Sara heard several cries of alarm from the spectator area and from Joey as well, but after a moment he straightened, his expression unchanged. "Your petty attacks can't change the truth, Professor."

"As much fun as it is to watch someone take Yugi down a peg, can we get on with this?" Seto asked, impatience clear in his tone as he passed by Yugi on his way to the field. "I've got a duel to win."

"Of course," Yugi replied, moving out of Seto's way and returning to his spot beside Joey, still managing to maintain that almost regal air despite the fact that he'd been injured.

"Kick his ass, Seto!" Mokuba shouted from behind.

Seto didn't acknowledge his brother's cheer, but from where she stood to the side of the field, Sara could see a slight flicker in his eyes. He took his place on their team's playing field to Sara's left and drew a card from his deck. He looked at it, expressionless, but a moment later, his gaze moved from the card to her, and he met her eyes for the first time since they'd started this whole disturbing game. His eyes locked onto hers for a moment, and she almost felt as if there was a living energy between them. And then she knew.

He'd just drawn his White Dragon.

She tried to remember the rules of the game. He needed to sacrifice a monster on the field to summon the White Dragon, didn't he? No, wait—two monsters. Except in that last duel, the one they hadn't finished because the holographic system had shorted out, he'd been able to get his Dragon onto the field with only one sacrifice: that seahorse that didn't look anything like a seahorse that he had on the field right now.

Sure enough, with a victorious smirk, he called out his play. "I sacrifice Kaiser Sea Horse, which allows me to use it as a single tribute to summon a Light-attribute monster that normally requires two sacrifices. With it, I summon Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"

The armored warrior that didn't really look like a seahorse disappeared, and the White Dragon materialized in its place. Sara's breath caught in her throat as she looked at the magnificent creature. It had been beautiful before, when Seto had showed it to her in the testing room at his company, but here it looked even more stunning. More _real_. She could almost feel it linked to her soul, a part of her, and yet no longer hers. _You're being ridiculous, Sara_, she admonished herself. _No matter what Joey Wheeler thinks, you are not the White Dragon._ But telling herself that could not make the feeling go away, and this bizarre situation in which she found herself wasn't exactly reinforcing her skepticism.

Seto took a moment's pause when the White Dragon was summoned, and then he resumed calling out moves. "I activate my Reflect Energy magic card, sacrificing Vorse Raider so that Blue-Eyes can attack your Life Points directly. Go, Blue-Eyes White Dragon, attack with White Lightning Blast!"

A thrill ran through Sara as the White Dragon reared up to attack, but Professor Julius held up his hand. "Not quite. I activate Draining Shield to negate the attack and add your dragon's attack points back to my own Life Points.

Seto's mouth pressed into a thin line, and Sara sighed in disappointment as her mentor's counter went up from 2900 to 5900 points. He turned to look at her. "There's your White Dragon, Sara. Not as invincible as Mr. Kaiba likes to believe."

"She's not my dragon." Without even thinking, she added silently, _I gave her to him._

The professor didn't respond, but returned to taunting Kaiba. "Is that all you have for me? Pinning all your hopes on one monster so that when it's stopped, you have nothing else?"

"I end my turn, but this duel is far from over, Julius." He met Sara's gaze once more, but only briefly this time, then turned and left the playing field.

"Well then, I believe it's my move," said the professor.

* * *

Yugi studied the field before him. They had his Dark Magician Girl, Joey's Panther Warrior, and Kaiba's Blue-Eyes White Dragon. Mai had two facedown cards, and Joey and Kaiba had one apiece. Yugi had Mirage Spell and Spellbinding Circle facedown. Mai and Joey each had four cards in their hands, Yugi had three, and Kaiba had two.

Professor Julius had only one monster, although it was a fairly powerful one— Ryu Kokki. It was no match for Kaiba's Blue-Eyes, but he also had two facedown cards, and knowing Ramesses' typical strategy, it was likely one or both of them was designed to give him control of one of their monsters, either temporarily or permanently.

The odd thing was that he only had one card left in his hand. It was unusual for a duelist to be able to play almost an entire hand on his very first turn. Yugi couldn't help but wonder if he was cheating somehow to get the exact cards he wanted in his hand. It certainly wouldn't be surprising, given the unfair advantages he'd given himself in calling this game. But while Shadow Games could be stacked in favor of the person who called them, the shadows themselves would turn on him if he were actually cheating, a fact Professor Julius had to know. That was even more worrisome, because it made it all the more unlikely that he was doing something illicit. What if he was just that in-tune with his deck—if the Heart of the Cards was working in his favor? Cheaters would be dealt with one way or another, but it was tough to fight against someone who really got the Heart of the Cards.

Yugi watched carefully as the professor drew, beginning his turn. He played the card he drew in the field card slot, but facedown. Unusual, that. Generally if a player had a field card that worked with their deck, they would play it as soon as they drew it. So what was it about this field card that made it valuable down the road, but not right now?

The next thing he did was to play his last card—Card of Sanctity. This would replenish his hand, and theirs too, allowing each player to draw until they had six cards. Convenient that the only card left in his hand allowed him to draw more cards. Yugi drew three more cards, not even looking at them as he narrowed his eyes and watched their opponent carefully, hoping to determine whether or not he was doing anything illegal as he drew his six new cards. Kaiba drew four cards, and Mai and Joey each drew two.

After drawing his six new cards, the professor fanned out his hand and took a moment to examine it, giving Yugi a chance to glance at his own cards to see what three cards he'd just drawn. Silent Magician Level 0, Curse of Dragon.…

And Slifer the Sky Dragon.

Yugi knew better than to react to his draw, so his expression stayed carefully neutral, but inside, his heart started beating a little faster. He'd drawn one of the Egyptian god cards after only two turns. The cards he hadn't played or even looked at in three years. The cards that he—Yugi—had never truly played at all. He'd _beaten_ them, but he'd never played them, not really.

Except… he had. If his other self had, he had too. And now the first god card that had ever come into his possession was in his hand, and all he needed to play it was to sacrifice three monsters. He certainly could do that, possibly as early as his next turn.

The question was, should he?

* * *

Téa was no duelist, but after six years of watching the top duelists in the world on a regular basis, she knew how to read them. She knew that the louder Joey got, the better his cards. She knew that Kaiba's back would straighten when he'd drawn Blue-Eyes. She knew that Mai would distract her opponents with either flirting or banter if she was about to switch strategies.

She knew Yugi best of all, of course, and that's why even though his back was to her as he stood in his area of the "bench," and even though he didn't so much as twitch a muscle, she knew by the way he seemed to just _stop_ that he'd just drawn one of the god cards. And now he was having a silent war with himself. Téa took a step forward, cursing the barrier Julius had put up, cutting her off from the field. Putting her right hand up—the one she'd drawn the mark across six years ago, forever bonding her to Yugi, Joey, and Tristan; the one she'd drawn a similar mark across seven months ago to include Mai, Serenity, Duke, and Rebecca in that bond—she pressed against the force field as if it were a window and closed her eyes. _They're your cards, Yugi. Don't be afraid of them. Don't worry about living up to him. You have everything you need inside_ you.

A quite voice in her ear startled her. "Is something wrong?"

She opened her eyes. "Oh, Tristan! No, I just…" She lowered her voice and leaned closer to him. "I think Yugi just drew one of the god cards."

His eyebrows rose almost imperceptibly. "Think he'll use it?"

She looked back at Yugi, who still had his back to her as he watched Julius continue with his turn. "I think he'll do whatever he has to to save everyone."

Tristan put a hand on her shoulder. "He always does."

Téa shivered, not quite sure why that suddenly sounded ominous to her ears.


	4. The Key

**4. The Key**

It was well after sunrise, and a good hour after Yugi and the others had left for the ancient Ishtar family home, when Bakura, Odion, and Rashida got out of the taxicab at the front gate of their current home to face Ishizu. When Bakura had last seen her, she was unconscious, having just lost a Shadow Game to Marik. Now it was Marik's body that lay inert, draped over Odion's shoulders as they walked up the long driveway toward the large, elegant house.

Marik's soul was not quite as inactive, however. It was currently controlling Bakura's body.

It took some getting used to, being a passenger in his own body. It was, of course, disturbingly reminiscent of the three years he spent possessed by the Spirit of the Ring. A fact that did not go unnoticed by Marik.

_Are you sure you're okay with this, Ry? You don't have to let me do this._

_I'm fine, Marik. As I believe I've told you already. Repeatedly. It isn't the same._

_Bullshit. I know what he did to you, what we both did to you—_

_And it isn't the same._ Bakura would have sighed if he were in control of his lungs. _I was completely powerless when he took control, and I would black out, not ride around as a passenger. This is a true alliance._

_Still… if at any time you aren't comfortable, if you need me to leave, just think it and I'm gone._

_It's fine, Marik._

They walked in silence behind Odion, and as they approached the door, Marik's thoughts became less overprotective and more strategic. _All right. Let me do most of the initial dueling. It will throw her off at first, because she's expecting Odion and Rashida, not you, and especially not me._

_I'm not so sure. Ramesses, perhaps, would not know that you have an alternate means of consciousness, but Ishizu does. One of the main reasons you took control of Téa in Battle City was specifically to talk to her, right? And Ishizu knows about me, as well._

_But we're not dealing with Ishizu, not really. What Reshef does is similar to what I did with the Millennium Rod. Maybe even similar to the way Atem could "control" Yugi or the Spirit of the Ring could control you. Through Reshef, Ramesses will have access to Ishizu's thoughts and memories just like he had access to mine, but he has no way of attaching any importance to Ishizu's knowledge or memories. Just because she would consider the memories of what I did in Battle City important doesn't mean he will. And he has completely overlooked you. Which is the key to our victory._

_How will that help if you're doing the dueling?_

_I said the _initial_ dueling. Most of what we'll be using is from my deck, my moves._ He tapped on the deck that was slotted into the Duel Disk attached to Bakura's left arm. _She'll forget it's you at all and focus on dueling me. And then when we draw Diabound…_

Bakura didn't need him to finish the sentence. _Do you think she'll have Reshef in her deck?_

_Yugi said that guy who blew up the cruise ship for him did._

_But he also said Ramesses used Rex and Weevil and Pegasus, and they didn't have Reshef._

Bakura could feel the pause in Marik's mind as he pondered this. _He asked Odion to bring me. I pissed him off by failing in San Francisco, and he has to know the only way Yugi would have known where to look for you and my family is through information he got from me. Ramesses is gonna want to _fry_ me. Yeah, she'll have Reshef in her deck, I think._

Bakura pushed aside the dark thoughts that came to him at the idea of Ramesses "frying" Marik. Or of any of the host of things he'd already done to him. _All right, Marik. I hope your plan works._

_It will. With the two of us together, how can we fail?_

Bakura didn't need words to remind Marik about their first alliance and how miserably it had failed, but that didn't diminish Marik's confidence.

_That was different. We barely knew each other, and the Spirit of the Ring wasn't exactly a team player. But now… _Marik stopped, almost as if he wanted to turn and face Bakura. _Ry, you're everything to me. I know I can't lose if you're behind me. And I know I can help you be everything you need to be without letting you become what you fear most._

It took a moment before Bakura's mind could form a thought coherent enough for him to pass on, but he could feel Marik's spirit wrap around his, sharing in the depth of everything he was feeling. When he could finally form words again, there weren't enough to say everything he wanted to, so he only used two: _You're right._

Ahead of them, Rashida and Odion reached the front door. Rashida unlocked it and they stepped in carefully, not sure what to expect. Bakura felt like he was in some thriller movie, with the audience screaming at him, _don't go in there!_ as Marik started them moving again and they followed into the house.

The foyer was empty, however. Odion turned to them, a question in his eyes, and Marik shrugged Bakura's shoulders. "Yugi didn't say where in the house Ishizu would meet us. Just 'at the house.'"

"She'd need space enough to duel with holograms," Odion said.

"The dining hall?" Rashida suggested.

"Perhaps." Bakura could feel Marik mulling over the layout of the house and the grounds until an idea came to him. "No, not inside the house. In the gardens. The walls are high enough to offer privacy, but there's enough space for even the largest monsters. And with Ramesses dueling Yugi and everyone underground, it will be hard enough for him to maintain any contact without having to go through another set of walls. We should look in the gardens."

Odion nodded, shifting the weight of Marik's body on his shoulders as they headed toward the back of the house.

"Are you sure you don't want me to carry my own body? It seems only fair."

"No… Marik." There was an odd pause before Odion said Marik's name as if he'd been about to say something else. Bakura had been around the Ishtar family long enough to know that even after nearly five years, Odion still occasionally had trouble thinking of Marik as his brother instead of his master. "I will carry you."

Marik reached out with Bakura's hand and touched Odion's arm. "You always have, Brother."

Odion gave a stiff nod and Rashida smiled, putting her hand on her husband's other arm. Together they proceeded through the house to the formal sitting room. Ornate French doors opened onto a long terrace that ran the length of the house. A low wall bordered the terrace, and steps led down into an expansive garden full of native Egyptian plants. It was a larger and more elaborate version of the garden outside Ishizu's office at the museum.

At the bottom of the steps stood Ishizu herself, a Duel Disk already on her arm.

"Ah, my dear family has finally arrived. Thank you for bringing my brother, Odion."

"_Our_ brother," Odion corrected, without any of the deference he usually showed Ishizu.

"Yes, of course. Why don't you lie him down in the shade." She hadn't yet even acknowledged Bakura's presence.

"What do you want with him?" Odion asked, not moving. "Or rather, what does Ramesses want with him?"

She smiled in a way that did not remotely look like any expression Bakura had ever seen on Ishizu's face. "He was a useful servant."

"He is your servant no longer."

"Our duel will decide his fate."

Apparently, Marik had decided he'd remained in the background long enough. With Bakura's legs, he took two long strides forward. "I will be your opponent."

Ishizu looked puzzled, as if it took a moment to place him. "Ryou Bakura?" Then, she gave another distinctively un-Ishizu-like smile. "My dear 'fiancé.' Come to duel for your lover, then?"

"No, Sister, not my lover. You will be dueling _me_."

* * *

Ramesses looked at his hand, carefully schooling his features to remain completely expressionless. He now had a full hand of six cards, all of which were exactly what he needed. Book of Life. Mirage Ruler. De-Fusion. Snatch Steal. And most importantly, two monsters, Senju of the Thousand Hands and Manju of the Ten Thousand Hands, which would bring him the most important cards in his deck. He also had Ultimate Offering and Chthonian Polymer traps facedown, the former of which he could use right now.

Looking up, he allowed himself a boastful smile. "I activate my Ultimate Offering permanent trap card, which for the price of a mere 500 Life Points per monster, allows me to normal summon more than one monster to the field per turn. I will use it to summon one extra monster, bringing both Senju of the Thousand Hands and Manju of the Ten Thousand Hands to the field."

His Life Points clicked down to 5400, and he saw his opponents exchange glances. "I see you remember what these monsters' special abilities are. When Senju is summoned to the field, he sends one ritual monster card from my deck to my hand. Manju's summoning sends one ritual _spell_ card to my hand. I believe you can hazard a guess as to which ritual monster and spell card I will choose?"

None of them answered, so he continued. "And now I have all that I need to perform the Final Ritual of the Ancients. Using Senju and Manju for a tribute, I now summon to the field Reshef the Dark Being, god of war and plagues, and personal guardian to the most powerful of all the pharaohs, Ramesses the Great!"

The stone tablet of the Final Ritual of the Ancients appeared on the field first and began to glow as Senju and Manju disappeared. Dazzling white light filled the chamber, almost obliterating the purple mists of the Shadow Realm. As the light grew brighter and brighter, a low hum emanated from the stone tablet, growing louder and turning into something like the sound of rushing wind as the light grew so intense he had to shield his eyes. The light gave one last final flare, then dimmed, and the rushing sound stopped, leaving the shadows murkier than ever and the chamber in eerie silence. When Ramesses looked up, Reshef the Dark Being was there in all his splendor—his burnished bronze armor spiking out from his shoulders, bronze claws at the ends of massive arms, and a chain mail skirt also made of bronze. There were three energy bands connecting his arms and lower torso to his chest, and they glowed a greenish-white, with blue, yellow, and orange balls of fluorescent light in the middle of each band. He was an impressive sight, encompassing all things: light and dark, good and evil, blessings and curses. And his greatest ability was that of control.

His opponents knew that. "Have you adequately prepared?" he asked them.

Little Yugi Mutou, the Nameless Pharaoh's vessel, drew himself up, making him look imposing despite his small stature. "You brought Reshef to the field, Professor. That means he's in the game. You can't use him to randomly attack us like Souls of the Forgotten or Darkfire Soldier."

Ramesses arched his eyebrow, filling in what Mutou left out. He looked past the duelists to where the four spectators stood behind them and eyed the pretty brunette standing behind Mutou. "Like he attacked your little girlfriend last May."

If he'd have blinked, he would've missed Mutou's flinch before he was back to playing at being pharaoh. "He is in the Dark Game, not an observer or guardian."

"Yes, yes, of course." Ramesses waved away the implication that that wasn't exactly how he wanted it. After all, it wasn't as if he didn't have monsters whose attacks could be even more devastating than Reshef's to serve as guardians of the game. "In the meantime, since Reshef is in the game, I believe I will discard my Snatch Steal spell card from my hand so that I can use his very special ability. Reshef, take control of Mr. Kaiba's Blue-Eyes White Dragon."

He heard a small gasp to his left and glanced over to see Sara looking a bit stricken.

"What's the matter, my dear? You want to see your White Dragon attack, don't you?"

She said nothing, glaring at him with more hate than he would have ever thought possible coming from his sweet little pupil. He smiled at her, then turned his attention back to his opponents.

Mutou coughed. "Did you really think we wouldn't be ready for Reshef? Activate Mirage Spell instant magic card!" One of his two facedown cards flipped up to show the image of a large plate of rainbow-striped glass. The glass shielded Blue-Eyes White Dragon from Reshef's control, and Mutou smirked. "Not only does Mirage Spell negate Reshef's effect, it gives our team 2000 Life Points, which will be going to Joey."

That stupid whelp friend of his barked out a laugh as his Life Points went up to 2600. "Ha ha, thanks, buddy!"

"Sorry, I think Blue-Eyes will be staying with me." Kaiba gave Sara another one of those tiresome looks that Ramesses supposed was meant to be meaningful.

"So it would seem. For now. In the meantime, Reshef will attack Panther Warrior."

"Wrong again." Mutou waved his hand and another of his facedown cards revealed itself, becoming a glowing green circle with markings all around. "I activate Spellbinding Circle to trap Reshef and keep him from attacking."

"Yes! You da man!" called out one of his annoying little disciples—the army MP—as the circle ensnared Reshef, who could no longer move.

Ramesses just shook his head. "Your trap cannot hold him forever, nor can it prevent him from using his special ability on future turns. But for now, Ryu Kokki, attack Panther Warrior."

This time they didn't have any counter-measures, and his mammoth monster composed entirely of human skulls destroyed the black cat-warrior, taking 400 of Wheeler's Life Points, putting him at 2200. He then set Mirage Ruler and De-Fusion facedown, ending his turn with only Book of Life left in his hand.

Kaiba shook his head and crossed his arms. "Well, that was underwhelming. All that pomp and circumstance—for what? We loose our most worthless monster, and Wheeler gets a net _gain_ of 1600 Life Points. I expected more from the 'greatest pharaoh that ever lived.'"

Ramesses scowled at the derision in his voice. "Be very careful, Mr. Kaiba. It's too early in the game to begin gloating. I assure you, this Dark Game is far from over."

"Blah blah blah," Valentine said as she took the field. "You're all talk and no action, aren't you, hon?"

"We shall see." And then quietly so they could not hear his words or even the language he was speaking, he began to chant. "Darkfire Soldier Number Two! _Iw sedjem eny. Iw iash i! Iw ii eny_!"


	5. Alliances

**5. Alliances**

It took a moment for Ishizu to register what Marik had just said. To Bakura, she almost looked like a robot accessing its databank as she tried to make sense of Marik's statement. Then, her eyes widened in surprise. "Marik? You are controlling Ryou?"

"Very good, Sister. Surely Ramesses is not under the mistaken belief that Reshef is the only thing capable of controlling others. He has studied the Millennium Items, hasn't he? He couldn't possibly be ignorant of the power of the Millennium Rod."

"Of course not. But the Millennium Items are gone."

Marik scoffed, crossing Bakura's arms. "And with them, access to the Shadow Realm. And yet, here we are, about to play a Shadow Game. Ramesses knows as well as we do that the pathways left by the Millennium Items and the Dark Games we played with them are permanent. Did he really think I could not use those pathways just as he has?"

Ishizu didn't answer.

"For an archaeologist and a college professor, our Ramesses isn't much of a deep thinker, is he?"

Ishizu scowled, another uncharacteristic expression. "Impertinence and vanity do not make you a capable duelist."

"Neither does hiding behind my sister's body and cards."

"Oh, I assure you, there is more to my deck than Ishizu Ishtar's cards and strategies. If you think simply switching our decks and our graveyards is the worst you can expect from me, you're in for quite a shock."

"That remains to be seen. _Sister_."

"And when I win, your soul will be lost to the Shadow Realm, _Brother_. Do not think you can continue this ploy of using other people's bodies to escape your fate. You, your whole family, and your precious lover will all remain in the shadows."

"You won't win. And when you lose, my sister and I will both be released. Completely. You will not control us any longer."

"Agreed."

_Are you ready, Ryou? Are you ready to test the power of our alliance?_

From deep inside his own mind, Bakura let his connection to Marik flow through both of them. _I'm ready._

Marik turned his attention to Ishizu. "Then, Sister, I think it's time we dueled."

* * *

Mai looked up as another monster materialized above and behind Julius. This one was considerably less easy on the eyes than Darkfire Soldier Number One—it was an ugly thing that looked almost human except for its blackened skin and the fact that it was wearing a robe of flame. It carried a long, glinting sword in each hand, and Mai took a step back as she heard Serenity and Joey call out her name in alarm. She braced for the attack she knew was coming… but nothing happened. Julius merely laughed.

"My, aren't we skittish. Expecting punishment for your disrespect, were you?"

"If you mean was I expecting you to keep cheating, you bet I was. So what gives? Don't tell me you're actually growing a conscience."

"I assure you, Ms. Valentine, I'm quite capable and ready to send my guardians to reprimand those who cannot show proper respect for the pharaoh. Let the summoning of Darkfire Soldier Number Two serve as a warning. The next time, I will not be so generous in holding back my monsters."

Mai rolled her eyes to mask the fact that she was studying him intently. How was he doing it? He had implied that they could summon their guardian monsters as well, but only if they knew how. This must be that key Yugi had mentioned, something they needed to do to gain access to their monsters. It had to be in the way he summoned them, she mused. Each time he had called them, he'd muttered something so quietly no one could hear. Maybe if they watched and listened closely enough, they could figure out what the hell he was saying.

But in the meantime, she had a duel to fight. She drew and looked at her card. _Well, well. Hello, Cyber Harpie Lady._ Actually, it was the second Harpie Lady she'd drawn. The first she'd gotten when Julius had played Card of Sanctity. That along with Harpie's Pet Dragon, which was the card she really needed. Talk about your Heart of the Cards….

"Well boys, things are about to get interesting. Say hello to everyone's favorite Lady of the game, Cyber Harpie Lady."

Julius snorted. "She's not all that impressive."

"Maybe not by herself; her power lies in her bond with her sisters. With her friends." Mai looked over her shoulder at Joey and winked at him. _You taught me that lesson, kiddo_. He nodded back at her in silent response.

She brought her attention back to Julius. "I really should thank you, Professor. As I'm sure you realize, your Ultimate Offering can be used by all the players, and seeing as I'm a little flush with Life Points at the moment, I think I'll spend a thousand of them to get two extra summons." Her Life Points went down to 3000 and she continued. "I'll use my first extra summon to bring Amazoness Blowpiper to the field."

Julius laughed again. "She's even less impressive than your Harpie Ladies! Surely you can do better than a monster with 800 attack points!"

"Why, Professor, I do believe you're right." She gave him one of her most fetching smiles, then looked at Yugi. "Mind if I borrow your Dark Magician Girl, kiddo?"

"Be my guest."

"Then I'll use my other extra summons to sacrifice Dark Magician Girl and Amazoness Blowpiper to bring out Harpie's Pet Dragon. And I think that'll do it for me."

Julius laughed harder this time. "Oh my dear, I believe your association with your guttersnipe beau has atrophied your brain. You paid 1000 Life Points just to get a monster with the same attack points as one of the ones you sacrificed? A foolish move, don't you think?"

She raised her eyebrows. "Well actually, since Harpie's Pet Dragon gets 300 attack points for every Harpie Lady on the field, it actually has 2300 attack points."

"Still not enough to defeat either Ryu Kokki or Reshef."

She widened her eyes and put her hand to her mouth as if horrified. "Oh no, you're right! Whatever will I do?" She looked at Joey again. "I guess I'll just have to hope Joey can fix my terrible mistake." She winked at him.

"I think I'm up to the challenge," he replied, meeting her gaze.

_Two down and three to go, hon. I hope your Red-Eyes is up to bat._

He smiled at her, his eyes telling her everything she needed to know.

* * *

Joey had a hard time keeping the grin off his face as he looked at his hand. Little Winguard, Dragon Dwelling in the Cave, Dark Dragon Ritual, Jinzo, Rocket Warrior, and Paladin of Dark Dragon. Everything he needed to bring them four-fifths of the way to a monster that would blow Reshef back to the hell it came from. Yugi or Kaiba would take care of the rest. He drew, adding Skull Dice to his hand. That would be helpful, too.

"First, I'm gonna perform a little ritual of my own, Professor. It's called Dark Dragon Ritual, and by sacrificing a four-star monster, I can use it to special-summon Paladin of Dark Dragon to the field." He discarded Little Winguard to start the ritual, and a warrior dressed in solid black armor materialized between Mai's Harpie's Pet Dragon and Kaiba's Blue-Eyes. "Paladin of Dark Dragon is a warrior with a special bond to a very special dragon. By sacrificing him, I can special summon that dragon from my deck. Everyone, say hello to Red-Eyes Black Dragon!"

The warrior disappeared, and in its place, Red-Eyes Black Dragon appeared. Across the field, he could see Sara watching eagerly. He grinned at her. _If you love dragons, just _wait_ 'til you see what we have in store for your teacher here._

Julius sneered. "You do realize that not only is your dragon not powerful enough to defeat either of my monsters, he is unable to attack this turn because he was summoned by Paladin of Dark Dragon?"

"Give the man a cookie; he knows the rules of the game." Joey looked back at his hand. "And now I'll summon Dragon Dwelling in the Cave in defense mode, set one card facedown and end my turn." He slipped Dragon Dwelling in the Cave into a monster slot on his Duel Disk and Skull Dice facedown in a trap slot next to his Hyper Refresh instant magic card. A thick, scaly green dragon appeared beside Red-Eyes, crouching down low to the ground in defense mode.

"And yet again, another completely wasted move." Julius was fairly brimming with malicious glee, but Joey ignored him. He stepped off the playing field as Yugi stepped up, and they bumped their fists again.

"It's up to you, Yuge."

Yugi nodded, and Joey knew they had nothing to worry about. It was all over but the victory party.

* * *

When Joey had summoned not only Red-Eyes Black Dragon but also Dragon Dwelling in the Cave, Yugi had almost melted in relief. There would be no need to summon Slifer now; with four dragons on the field, he had everything in his hand necessary to summon one of the most powerful creatures in Duel Monsters. It was exceedingly difficult to summon, but working as a team—with Kaiba's full cooperation, even—they had assembled all the elements they needed. If Kaiba had a plan for summoning a second Blue-Eyes on his next turn, they could likely even finish the duel before Professor Julius got another turn.

But he was getting ahead of himself. Grinning, he drew Gazelle King of Mythical Beasts and added it to his hand, which now consisted of Polymerization, Kuriboh, Unity, Silent Magician Level 0, Curse of Dragon, and Slifer the Sky Dragon in addition to Gazelle. "It's time for you to see the true power of teamwork, Professor. Something a man who only likes to control others could never understand."

Kaiba grunted. "Forget the sermons and just play the damned card, Yugi."

"Certainly, Kaiba. I play the magic card Polymerization together with Curse of Dragon from my hand to fuse five dragons—Harpie's Pet Dragon, Red-Eyes Black Dragon, Dragon Dwelling in the Cave, Blue-Eyes White Dragon, and Curse of Dragon—to form Five-Headed Dragon! Not only does this creature have 5000 attack and defense points, it can only be damaged by an attack from a Light-attribute monster."

The four dragons on the field disappeared, and a fearsome but beautiful creature appeared in its place. It was mammoth, with a gold-colored body and wings, and five different heads in red, black, green, gold, and white, each from one of the dragons that was fused to create it.

Professor Julius clucked his tongue, shaking his head sadly. "Really, my young _scholar_. Must you be so predictable? After six months in the desert with you and that whiney brat granddaughter of Arthur's, do you think I somehow managed to fail to hear your ramblings about friendship? Did you really expect that I would not be prepared for you and your friends to combine forces and create one monster from the many you have in your individual decks? I've been expecting this moment from the first card you drew, and I'm prepared." He waved his arm in a grand gesture. "I activate my Chthonian Polymer trap card!"

"What's that?" Téa asked. "I've never heard of it."

Yugi knew what it was, though, and apparently Kaiba did, too, because he looked like he was going to put his fist through his own Duel Disk. Yugi gnashed his teeth in frustration as he explained. "It's a trap for fusion monsters. It was activated when we used Polymerization to fuse two or more monsters together. If he sacrifices one of his monsters on the field, he can take control of the fusion monster."

"For one turn?"

Yugi shook his head, grinding his teeth even more. "Until the monster is destroyed."

"Very good!" The professor clapped his hands in an exaggerated manner. "Perhaps you're not as poor a student as I thought. At least you know your trap cards, although it would have served you better if you had thought of this trap before I sprang it. But in the meantime, I believe I will sacrifice Ryu Kokki to take control of your Five-Headed Dragon."

The dragon dissolved with a plaintive roar that sounded like it mostly came from the white head. It then materialized on the opposite side of the field in Ryu Kokki's place.

Julius folded his arms looking very smug. "And now what will you do? Your vaunted _team_ has but one monster on the field—Ms. Valentine's pathetic little Harpie Lady—while I have your Five-Headed Dragon and my Reshef the Dark Being."

"Which can't attack," Joey reminded him.

"Do you think that really matters with a 5000-attack-strength monster on my side?" He met Yugi's gaze, his eyes leveling a challenge. "Are you really a son of Egypt? A descendant of the pharaohs? Of the gods themselves? If you are, then surely you have something that can defeat a mere _dragon_."

Yugi growled in the back of his throat. What was he getting at? Was he merely taunting him, sure that Yugi could not possibly have something in his deck more powerful than a 5000-attack-strength dragon? Or did he suspect that Yugi had brought the god cards with him and was goading him into playing them? Did he have a way to stop them—or worse, control them? Reshef could control even a god card for one turn, but did the professor have something in his deck that could control them permanently? If he summoned Slifer, did he put all of them at an even greater risk?

He looked at his cards, at Slifer in particular, and tried to imagine the times he had watched in spirit form as his other self played them, but the image that kept coming to the forefront was the Ceremonial Battle when he'd stood _against_ his other self. Against the gods.

_Good thing we have on our side the one person who has defeated all three god cards in a single move_, Kaiba had said, but was that really a risk he wanted to take, summoning the god cards only to hope that he could defeat them if necessary?

Yugi closed his eyes. _Other Me, what would you do? What should _I _do?_

_Trust in the Heart of the Cards._

His eyes opened with a snap. Looking back at his cards, he contemplated them and the field. Cyber Harpie Lady, Kuriboh, Gazelle, Silent Magician Level 0.

Unity.

He smiled. "I'll take your challenge, Professor. And we'll see who is a real son of Egypt. First I summon Silent Magician Level 0. Then I will make use of your Ultimate Offering card and pay 500 Life Points to summon a second monster, Kuriboh." The tiny, childlike magician and the furball with big round eyes and menacing claws joined Cyber Harpie Lady on the field as his Life Points went down to 3500. "Now I will sacrifice these three monsters to bring forth Slifer the Sky Dragon!"

A cheer rose up from the spectator area—Tristan and Téa, he thought—and Joey pumped his arm into the air. "YES!" Even Kaiba looked pleased. The three monsters dissolved away in a brilliant flash of red light, and out of their ashes rose a huge, serpentine dragon with crimson scales and two mouths.

"You wanted to know if I'm a descendant of the pharaohs, of the gods themselves? Well, Professor, behold one of the gods of Egypt."


	6. Dragons and Gods

**6. Dragons and Gods**

Kaiba had been sure the little runt was gonna balk, that he'd convinced himself the god cards were something more than just the most powerful creatures in Duel Monsters, that they were something truly divine that only his more competent other half could wield. But then Julius had goaded him, and damned if the little geek hadn't come through, not just setting the stage to summon one of the gods, but actually pulling it off that very turn. The only problem was that Slifer's attack and defense points depended solely on the number of cards its owner held in his hand, and after all the cards it took Yugi to first summon Five-Headed Dragon and then Slifer, he only had two cards left in his hand, meaning Slifer had a mere 2000 attack points, less than half of Five-Headed Dragon's and not even enough to take out Reshef.

A point that had not escaped Julius's attention. "Your 'god' isn't very impressive with only 2000 attack points, Mr. Mutou. It seems to me like all that effort was wasted."

"That's only because you don't understand the power of the gods. Perhaps you are the one who isn't a true son of Egypt."

That didn't go over well with Julius.

"Yuge, look out!" Wheeler shouted as Darkfire Soldier #2 darted out from across the field and slashed at Yugi with both of his swords. Téa cried out as well, pressing up against the barrier as if she could somehow protect him if only she could reach him.

Idiots, the lot of them. But Julius was the biggest idiot of them all.

It took a moment for Yugi to recover from the attack—if damage was cumulative, then he'd now suffered the equivalent of 2600 points worth of damage—but when he did, he left the field with his back straight in a way that he only seemed to do when he was either dueling or well and truly pissed off. _That's the other Yugi_, Kaiba thought, then brushed the thought away in irritation. This had nothing to do with magic and ancient Egyptian nonsense. This was a game, pure and simple, and the one with the best strategy would win.

Lucky for Yugi that he was on Kaiba's side, then. Because Slifer the Sky Dragon was about to get a hell of a lot more powerful.

Kaiba took his place on the field and drew Premature Burial. He slipped it into his hand without really considering it, then looked at the rest of his cards: Cost Down, Paladin of White Dragon, Fusion Recovery, Monster Reborn, his second Blue-Eyes White Dragon, and Card of Sanctity. He also had Interdimensional Matter Transporter facedown on the field, which could keep one of their monsters safe from Reshef's control for a turn. Even though traps didn't work _against_ the god cards, if it would _help_ the god, he'd be able to use it.

"You can blather on all day about being sons of Egypt and destiny and who's got the bigger… headdress, but I've got a duel to win. So to start, I'm going to play Monster Reborn to bring back my Kaiser Sea Horse from the graveyard, then sacrifice that to summon my second Blue-Eyes White Dragon."

His eyes caught Sara's again—he couldn't help it. Whenever Blue-Eyes was on the field, it was like he could feel Sara there, too, _inside_ him, coursing through his very veins. She could feel it as well; he could see it in her eyes. _You're finally going to see her attack, Sara. Are you ready?_

As if she'd heard his thoughts, she gave a slight nod. He looked at Julius. "Blue-Eyes White Dragon, attack Reshef the Dark Being with White Lightning Blast!"

The roar from Blue-Eyes was almost joyful. She reared up, a ball of blue-white lightning forming in her mouth, which she shot towards Reshef, obliterating him and taking Spellbinding Circle with him. Julius lost 500 Life Points, bringing him down to 4900.

"And now, let's see if you still think Slifer isn't impressive enough for you. I play Card of Sanctity. Help yourself to a card or four, Yugi." Kaiba smirked at the professor as Yugi drew his four cards. "So let's see—if Yugi's holding six cards, that gives Slifer 6000 attack points. Now whose got the biggest…?"

Julius didn't answer, but he looked furious. A quick wave of his hand sent Darkfire Soldier #1 in Kaiba's direction and suddenly Kaiba found himself doubled over on the field, taking the equivalent of 1700 points worth of damage. It knocked the wind out of him at first, and he heard his brother and Sara shout his name, but after a moment the pain died down and he could breathe again. He glared at Julius. "Coward."

"_Nii-sama_, stop, or he'll send Souls of the Forgotten after you, too!"

Kaiba ignored his brother as he drew two cards to give him a hand of six. Valentine also drew two cards, Wheeler drew four, and Julius drew five.

Kaiba looked at his new cards. Battle Ox and Card of Safe Return. Nothing that would help him at the moment, but it didn't matter. They had Blue-Eyes and a 6000-point Slifer, while Julius had lost Reshef. There was no way he was gonna do anything against Blue-Eyes and one of the Egyptian gods. Kaiba ended his turn and walked off the field.

Julius stepped up and drew a card. "You think you're quite clever, don't you Mr. Kaiba? Yet you refuse to acknowledge that the source of your power also comes from one of the pharaohs of Egypt. A lesser pharaoh, granted. A pathetic excuse for a pharaoh, really. But a pharaoh nonetheless."

"Is that supposed to hurt my feelings?" It didn't, of course, but he could see Sara was livid. For a moment, he felt a pang of jealousy—_she's mine, not_ his!—but he brushed that off in irritation with himself. This wasn't about Sara or ancient Egypt or a pharaoh that looked like him. It was about the here and now, and here and now he had an adversary to annihilate.

Julius shook his head, that damnable condescending tone he'd been using on Yugi oozing into his voice. "By denying where your power comes from, you cut yourself off from it, Mr. Kaiba. And that is why you will lose." He played Pot of Greed and drew two more cards. "Now I activate my field card, Chorus of Sanctuary, which gives all defense position monsters an extra 500 defense points."

Kaiba frowned. He'd forgotten that Julius had set that facedown field card earlier.

"Next, I play the Book of Life to Special Summon Reshef the Dark Being from the graveyard in defense mode."

Reshef reappeared, thankfully without the light show and sound effects this time. He knelt down on the field with 1500 defense points, then gained an additional 500 from Chorus of Sanctuary. As soon as he had fully materialized, however, Slifer's second mouth, which automatically attacked every time an opponent's monster was summoned, blasted Reshef, bringing his defense points down by 2000 back to exactly 0. It was one point shy of destroying him, but it did render him as weak and ineffectual as those ridiculous Scapegoats that Wheeler was always using when he was desperate. Which was pretty much any time he dueled.

Julius looked pleased with himself. "Book of Life also allows me to remove one card in the Graveyard from play, so I think I will take Kaiser Sea Horse so you can't summon your third White Dragon with only one sacrifice. And last but never least, I discard one spell card from my hand to activate Reshef's special ability to take control of Slifer the Sky Dragon!"

Kaiba bit back a curse while Wheeler voiced one aloud and Yugi's cheerleaders gasped. Yugi remained silent, his expression unreadable. None of his so-called teammates made a move to counter Julius, so Kaiba mentally ran through his options. His Interdimensional Transporter could take Slifer off the field for one turn, but if it did, Julius would use Reshef to take control of Blue-Eyes, and they would have nothing left to defend them. With Wheeler down to 2200 Life Points, that was a no go. Although if Julius did take Slifer, he'd be able to destroy Blue-Eyes and still go after Wheeler's Life Points. Kaiba glared at the hack, annoyed beyond measure that his fate was linked to Kaiba's own. _You'd better be able to defend yourself, underdog_. Then, with a grunt, Kaiba did nothing, letting Julius take control of Slifer.

The gigantic red dragon dissolved from its place on their side of the field and reappeared across from them, coiling itself like a snake and poising menacingly above, waiting to attack. Julius had five cards in his hand, giving Slifer 5000 attack points. His eyes glinted. "Now who controls the gods of Egypt?"

* * *

For a moment, Joey thought Kaiba had something to keep Julius from taking Slifer away from Yugi, but when he did nothing, Joey swore again. This was _so_ not good. Once that bastard took care of Blue-Eyes, they'd have no monsters left to protect them and not one of them had enough Life Points to withstand a direct attack from Five-Headed Dragon. Of course, the way Kaiba was glaring at Joey in that _you'd better not screw this up_ way, the big rich jerk was assuming Julius would go after him, but Joey wasn't so sure. Yeah, Julius had been singling him out since the duel began, but if he could win just as easily by attacking Yugi, he'd do it. After all, Joey was just the weak link, the screw up, the one who couldn't defend himself.

Except that was bullshit, and even if Kaiba and Julius didn't know it, Joey did. Let Julius bring on his worst; he'd be ready. There was no way he was gonna let any of them get taken down, not even Kaiba, not with so much at stake. And even Kaiba himself had admitted that Joey knew how to stand up for himself. Well, he knew how to stand up for his friends, too.

With a gloating sneer that made Joey want to smash his fist into Julius's face, the old man summoned Goblin Attack Force to the field. He now had their Five-Headed Dragon, a completely drained Reshef that was only good for controlling other monsters and protecting Julius's Life Points, Yugi's Slifer with 5000 attack points, and now Goblin Attack Force with 2300 attack points. Unfortunately, with Slifer on his side of the field, the god's second mouth didn't go after Goblin Attack Force when it was summoned.

This time Joey didn't swear out loud, but let the curses roll around in his head instead. This was going to complicate matters. A lot.

Julius would most likely send Slifer after Blue-Eyes. With five facedown cards among them, he wouldn't want to risk them having a trap card that could stop Five-Headed Dragon and leave Blue-Eyes on the field. If Slifer did attack Blue-Eyes, that would leave Goblin Attack Force and Five-Headed Dragon to go after any of their Life Points. He'd send Goblin Attack Force after either Joey or Kaiba—and if Joey had to guess, he figured it would be Kaiba since defeating one of the "sons of Egypt" directly would be a sweeter victory. He'd then want to send Five-Headed Dragon after any of the other three who were left, most likely Yugi. Which was all well and good on the surface—Joey could protect Kaiba and Yugi both. In theory. And Julius was just the kind of bastard who would want to do as much damage as possible, so he'd definitely want to go after both of them.

The problem was with Joey's first line of defense, Hyper Refresh. It could only benefit one player in a tag duel, and if Julius attacked two different players, then the second would still be vulnerable. If Joey rolled one or a two on Skull Dice, Five-Headed Dragon would still be able to take out him or Kaiba, whichever one didn't get the boost from Hyper Refresh.

A thought came to him. If he could get Julius to call a simultaneous attack with _both monsters attacking the same person_, then it would be too late to redirect Five-Headed Dragon to a weaker opponent. So long as he rolled anything but a one, they'd be golden.

As Joey predicted, Julius used Slifer to attack Blue-Eyes. Kaiba grimaced as Slifer's attack ripped through his Blue-Eyes and gave him 2000 points of damage, dropping him to 2000 Life Points.

"And now, whom shall I attack next? I have enough monsters to take two of you down to zero Life Points. The only question is, which two?"

_No, no, no, you can't attack two of us…._ Joey clenched his fists. "Give me a break, you tired old windbag. You're playing against the four best duelists in the world. You think any one of us doesn't have a way to stop you? Get over yourself, you bloated sack of horse shit."

Julius narrowed his eyes. "Are you volunteering to be my first victim?"

Joey put all the cockiness he could behind his grin. "Sure, why not?"

"You seem rather confident for someone with only 2200 Life Points. Either one of my monsters could destroy you."

"So you keep saying. Bring it on, then." _Come on, take the bait…_

Yugi cocked his head at Joey, obviously trying to puzzle out what he was doing. "Joey, be careful…."

_Trust me, Yuge. I know what I'm doing._

Julius squinted at them, suspicious. "You're awfully eager to get me to attack you."

"You better believe I want you to attack me. 'Cause then I get to be the one to take you down. Your _majesty_."

"Do you really think your transparent ploys will work? I'm not so easily led around by the nose, especially not by a whelp like you."

"Then call my bluff."

"I never said you were bluffing. Even a rank amateur wouldn't try such an obvious ruse. I'm quite sure that one of your facedown cards can protect you from Goblin Attack Force. Maybe you even have enough to protect you from Five-Headed Dragon. But I wonder, do you have enough to protect you from _both_?"

Joey let his eyes widen just enough to look truly surprised, but said nothing.

"No, wait, Joey…" Yugi said, and Joey wasn't sure if he'd caught on and was playing along, or if he was really alarmed for him, but it didn't matter because Julius made his decision.

"Goblin Attack Force and Five-Headed Dragon, attack Joey Wheeler's Life Points directly!"

_Bingo._ "Activate facedown cards Hyper Refresh and Skull Dice!" Joey grinned. "Hyper Refresh doubles my Life Points when there are no monsters on my side of the field and the combined attack strength of your monsters is greater than my Life Points. And now I'll take a little roll of the Skull Dice…." The little bat-winged demon with the red die that was almost bigger than he was rolled it. _Anything but one, just don't let it come up as a one…._ The die landed… on two. Joey let out a relieved huff of air. "And there you have it, folks. Since Skull Dice rolled a two, both your monsters attack strengths are cut in half, and now that I have 4400 Life Points, your 3650 attack points ain't gonna cut it."

"All right, Joey!"

"Way to go, bro!"

"You did it, _Onii-chan_!"

"That's showing him, hon!"

The attack came, first Goblin Attack Force, then Five-Headed Dragon. The force of 3650 points of damage was enough to nearly knock him off his feet, but when the dust cleared, he was still standing with 750 Life Points. He gave Julius a hard glare. "I'm gonna go with 'yes, I do have enough to protect me from both.' Still think a rank amateur wouldn't try something so obvious?" He wrinkled his nose. "Wait, that didn't come out right."

"No, I think you hit the nail on the head, Wheeler."

"Listen, rich boy…."

Yugi stood between Joey and Kaiba. "Guys…."

"You are all children," Julius said, trying to get the condescending sneer back, but he looked a little too angry to pull it off right now. "Don't think that saving yourself for one more turn will help you."

"I think we'll take Slifer back now," Yugi said.

"I haven't finished my turn yet." Julius paid 500 Life Points to use Ultimate Offering, bringing him to 4400. He used it to sacrifice Goblin Attack Force and set a monster in facedown defense position. He set two more cards, then ended his turn. Slifer returned to their side of the field and was back to 6000 attack points based on the number of cards in Yugi's hand.

Joey looked at Mai. "You're up baby. Give 'em hell!"

"You know it." She stepped up to the field, preparing to draw, when she stopped. "Uh-oh, there he goes again, muttering under his breath!"

Yugi noticed too. "He's summoning another side monster! Whatever he's saying, that's the key!"

Joey squinted through the murky gloom, trying to make out his words, but he couldn't see or hear anything. "What's he saying? Can you—?" He stopped short when he realized it was already too late. The three monsters he'd summoned previously were gone, and a new monster was towering protectively above Julius. It looked like a demon, almost as large as Slifer, with glistening red skin, horns coming out of both sides of its head, and a row of teeth that would've made a shark envious. "What the hell is that thing?"

It was Kaiba who answered. "Ultimate Obedient Fiend."


	7. Power

**7. Power**

"Gilgarth, attack her Kelbek!"

Bakura winced as Ishizu took 300 points of damage from Marik's 1800-point monster, which tore into her 1500-point one, bringing her down to 3200 Life Points. Even though it was imperative that Marik win, Bakura didn't like to see Ishizu, whom he'd come to love as a sister, suffer the very real pain that battle damage inflicted in Dark Games.

Ishizu looked up. "Very nice, Brother. You are now ahead by 100 Life Points. We are clearly very evenly matched."

"Were you really my sister, I might agree. But with someone else pulling the strings, someone who only _thinks_ he knows me as well as you do, I have no doubts you will lose easily." He played Nightmare Wheel facedown and ended his turn.

"So tell me," Ishizu said conversationally as she drew, "how did you enjoy your trip to Greece?"

Bakura wasn't sure whether it was his own spark of bitterness or Marik's that he was feeling. Marik's answer was slow and careful. "Greece is always lovely. Why do you ask?"

Ishizu sacrificed her Mudora to summon Spiria in defense mode. "I just thought perhaps you might want to send a thank you note to dear Professor Julius for arranging the trip."

This time Bakura was sure the anger came from both of them. Gripping the cards in his hand tightly, Marik looked across the field through Bakura's eyes. "I knew it! He was the one who informed the police."

"Of course."

"How did he…? Never mind." But Bakura could "hear" Marik answer his own question. _He knows whatever I know. He's been controlling me off and on since before he left on that dig with Yugi and Professor Hawkins. Of course he knows about us._

"He also arranged for my rather well-connected friend to tip me off and suggest one of you leave the country. He knew which one of you I would pick. And it was so much easier to gain access to you without Odion, Ryou, and myself watching your every step."

Odion who, along with Rashida, had been seated on the ground beside Marik's unconscious body, jumped to his feet. "Then your master has underestimated the bond both you and I share with our brother. Send him to Greece or send him to the ends of the earth, and he will still be within our care."

"My master sent him to London, and we knew nothing about it."

"That may be, but now here he is, with us, and with Ryou. Geographic distance means nothing. My sister knows this; she followed Master Marik around the world to save him from himself."

She looked at Odion. "Do you forget how I came to be in his service? My _dear brother_ defeated me in a Shadow Game. That is how powerful our effect on him is—he was willing to destroy us all." She activated Spiria's special ability, which allowed her to look at one of her opponent's facedown cards once per turn. She pointed to Nightmare Wheel, and it revealed itself to her.

Bakura felt another wave of Marik's anger course through him. "He may have controlled my body and my actions. Perhaps even my mind. But he could never control my will. Not even my darker half was capable of making me _will_ your destruction. That is why I fought back with the Spirit of the Ring and with Téa against him at Battle City. And that is why I am fighting back with Ryou against your 'master' now. Odion is right. He can send me to the ends of the earth and to the Shadow Realm itself, but he has no real power over me. He cannot separate me from the people that I love."

Ishizu played the magic card Nobleman of Extermination, which destroyed one facedown trap or spell card on the field, and if it is a trap, any trap cards of the same name in Marik's deck. She chose Nightmare Wheel, and Marik lost the one on the field and a second that he had in his deck. She then sent her Zolga monster with the Sword of Dogra, increasing its attack from 1700 to 2200, and attacked Gilgarth. Bakura felt the 400 points of damage hit his body as Gilgarth was destroyed, and Marik's Life Points went down to 2900.

Ishizu gave them a tight smile. "It is a good thing, then, that _all_ the people you love will be sent to the Shadow Realm when I defeat you."

* * *

Sara looked up at the giant red demon that almost completely filled the air over Professor Julius's side of the field. It was absolutely hideous, even worse than the thing made out of skulls.

Mai, apparently, concurred. "Ultimate Obedient Fiend? Why does that not sound good?"

"Because he isn't good—for you or your teammates, that is," Professor Julius answered. "I doubt any of you will be able to shake off an attack from him quite as easily as you did the Darkfire Soldiers or Souls of the Forgotten."

"Then fortunately for us, he can't attack," Seto said. "At least not while you've got those two cards in your hand and monsters on the field. Ultimate Obedient Fiend can only attack when he's the only monster on your side of the field and there are no cards in your hand."

"Yes, but he's not on the field, is he? He is, however, the only monster _off_ my side of the field."

"You still have cards in your hand."

"Mr. Kaiba, are you really having that much trouble following this Dark Game? He is not a _part_ of the game, therefore the cards in my hand are irrelevant."

Sara glared at her mentor. "What the bloody hell is wrong with you?"

He seemed surprised that she'd spoken, as if he'd forgotten she was there. Seto, too, looked at her with a worried frown, but she kept her eyes resolutely on the professor as he raised his eyebrows at her. "Why, Sara, are you not enjoying your ringside seats to this epic battle?"

"You call this an epic battle? You're _cheating_! I'm a newbie who's seen all of three and a half games in my life, and even I know that. You… you're supposed to be a man of honor!"

"This is war, Sara. There are no rules. There is only strategy, cunning, and dominance."

"Bullocks! This isn't a war! You're not fighting for king or country!"

"I _am_ a king!"

"You're a child throwing a tantrum!"

He glared at her, an expression so cold she almost took a step back as the thought occurred to her that she had no idea if whatever sort of glass box he was holding her in could keep that red demon on the field from going after her.

Seto, it seemed, had the same concern. "Sara, leave him to us."

Wrong thing to say. "Leave him to _you_? So you can beat him in a game? And then what? You're as mad as he is!"

Seto didn't answer, but Yugi did. "We didn't ask for this Dark Game, Sara. If you wanna know the truth, I'm sick to death of them. I'd like to play one tournament—one _game_—for _fun_. Three years ago, we put the Millennium Items back, let them be buried again so that we could end this once and for all. But people like Professor Julius, they won't let it end. They think if they can access the Shadow Realm, if they can control the Dark Games, then they can be more powerful or more… I don't even know. Just _more_. So we fight back because we can. Somebody has to."

"And what do you get if you win?"

He shrugged. "To stop. Until the next lunatic comes along."

Julius snorted. "Do you have any idea how ridiculous you sound? You know nothing about the Shadow Realm, or about real power."

"And you do? Controlling others, you think that's power? Not even the _gods_ wanted mindless puppets, Professor. Look at any religion, ancient or modern, any myth or tale of the divine. Even the most omnipotent of gods didn't control their subjects completely. Power is a paradox, Professor. The more completely you control something, the less real power you have over it.

"I can see why you're Arthur's student, Mr. Mutou. Romantic rubbish, the lot of it. You understand _nothing_."

Sara gaped at her mentor. "He sounds bloody spot on to me! You're supposed to be my _mentor_. I… I came to Cairo to study with you, Professor, because I'd heard you speak at Cambridge on the pharaohs and the mythology of Egypt. _Mythology_, Professor! Not this insanity you're spewing now. I thought you were a brilliant man. I changed courses because of you. I based my entire academic _career_ on what you'd written."

"I _am_ a brilliant man, make no mistake."

"You're a nutter and a cheat and the worst kind of hypocrite! You are a disgrace to academia and a disgrace to the memory of the pharaohs!"

"I _AM_ THE MEMORY OF THE PHARAOHS!"

Sara took another step back. His face was contorted in rage, making him look more frightening than even the giant demon on the field as he took a step toward her.

"Julius, STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM HER!"

The professor and Sara both stopped and stared across the field at Seto, who looked ready to lunge across the field. "You are dueling ME, Julius."

Mai coughed. "Uh, not to rain on your little ego parade, hon, but he's dueling _us_, not _you_. So if you boys are done with your little petulant fits, I'd like to take _my_ turn now."

The professor regained his composure and gave Mai an icy smile. "Careful, Ms. Valentine. You don't want to be my new servant's first target, do you?"

"First Sara, and now Valentine?" Seto asked. "Afraid to go after anyone stronger?"

Mai looked ready to kill him for that bit of chauvinism, and Sara would have gladly helped, but then she noticed Yugi's eyes widen as if he'd just had an epiphany. "He can't attack anyone else right now. He can only attack the player on the _field_."

Mai frowned. "You're right! All the attacks have happened to players on the field!"

Yugi gave Julius a look like the professor was a difficult hieroglyphic that he was dissecting from the inside out. "Your power's not as limitless as you'd like us to believe, is it, Professor? You can't hurt Sara or any of the spectators on our side of the field."

"So let me get this straight." Joey crossed his arms. "We can say whatever we want when we're on the 'bench,' and you can't do a damn thing about it. Sound about right, ya low-life scum-sucking bottom feeder?"

The professor glared at him. "You wouldn't want your girlfriend to suffer for your impudence, now, would you, Wheeler?"

Joey's eyes narrowed to slits in an instant. "You so much as breathe in her direction, and I'll—"

"You'll what?"

Joey said nothing, but clenched his fists so hard Sara thought he might draw blood from his palms.

Yugi was still studying Professor Julius like a puzzle. "Joey, don't you get it? He _can't_ hurt her, not unless _she_ says something, isn't that right, Professor? You can't attack us randomly, not even the person on the field. Your guardians have to think you're being threatened. You're goading us into insulting you so you have a reason to hit us. You're hoping to take us out of the game, because you know you can't win otherwise."

The professor's glare looked like admission enough to Sara, although his words were hardly conceding. On the contrary, they sent a cold shiver down her spine.

"I assure you, I can and will win, Mr. Mutou."


	8. Bait

**8. Bait**

Mai had lost her patience with all the male posturing. "Hello, _my_ turn!" She directed her attention to the field once again, trying to get her head back in the game. While figuring out the rules to Julius's out-of-game attacks was all well and good, the duel itself had been a little too close for comfort, with them first losing Five-Headed Dragon and then Slifer. Even with Slifer back on their side, however, Julius still had Reshef, which meant they couldn't count on any of their monsters sticking with them. Time for a new tactic. She drew, and smiled. Elegant Egotist. And considering she had another Cyber Harpie in her hand along with Arrow Nail and a recent addition to her deck, Hysteric Party, it looked like a new tactic in the making.

"All right boys, let's get back to why we came, shall we? And I say it's time to bring the ladies back to the party." She summoned Cyber Harpie Lady and played Elegant Egotist to multiply her into the three Harpie Lady Sisters. She then equipped her first Harpie with Arrow Nail, increasing its attack points from 1800 to 2100. But she used one of her unequipped Harpies to attack. "Say bye-bye to Reshef, Professor!"

"I don't think so. Activate Ring of Nine Lives!"

Mai groaned, as did several of her teammates and their friends. Ring of Nine Lives was a card they'd seen Ramesses use before to protect Reshef. When equipped to a monster with special summoning requirements, like a ritual monster, it would make it impervious to attacks and all card effects for nine turns. Her first attack thwarted, Mai sent her Harpie with Arrow Nail to go after to his facedown card, which turned out to be Helpoemer, a five-star monster with 1900 defense points.

"Thank you, my dear, that was most helpful."

Mai wrinkled her nose. "Come again?"

"Helpoemer has a special ability that activates when it is in the graveyard. As long as it remains there, my opponent—or opponents—loose one card randomly from their hands at the end of each of their Battle Phases.

Joey grunted. "I remember that card. Psycho-Marik played it in our Battle City duel. Must be all the rage among deranged bad guys."

Mai's Battle Phase was over, so a ghostly hand immediately came out of Julius's graveyard and reached for her hand. She held her breath—_not Hysteric Party, please not Hysteric Party_—and then let it out slowly when it grabbed Dark Witch and sent it to her graveyard. She set Hysteric Party facedown to get it out of her hand and Helpoemer's grasp for future turns, then ended her turn. _Well, that could've been much worse._

"I'll take it from here," Joey said as he took her place on the playing field, giving her a high five as she passed.

"He's all yours, hon."

* * *

Yugi watched as Joey took the field, praying silently that his boisterous friend would use some discretion and not provoke Julius into attacking him. Although it had been a brilliant strategy to lure Julius into sending both his monsters to attack so that he could use Hyper Refresh to protect his Life Points, Ultimate Obedient Fiend made Yugi more than a little nervous, and he wasn't interested in seeing Joey test exactly what kind of damage it could really do. He'd seen the results of an out-of-bonds attack from Reshef, and Ultimate Obedient Fiend was 1000 attack points stronger.

Joey seemed too mad for banter, however. He played one monster in facedown defense mode and set three spell or trap cards facedown. Bypassing his battle phase all together, thus saving himself from losing a card to Helpoemer's effect, he ended his turn without so much as a single taunt directed at their opponent.

Apparently, Yugi wasn't the only one who noticed. Julius's lips slid into a slippery smile. "What? Not only do you not play anything worthwhile, you don't even have some of that witty repartee for which you're so famous?"

Yugi growled in the back of his throat. _Don't take the bait, Joey._

"You're not worth wasting my breath. I'll let our cards do the talking. And since Yugi is up next, I have a feeling Slifer will have a few things to say."

Yugi breathed a sigh of relief when Joey stepped off the field without further comment. Stepping into the place Joey had just vacated, Yugi drew a card.

Obelisk the Tormentor.

Keeping his face completely blank, he slipped Obelisk into his hand, which now consisted of Unity, Gazelle King of Mythical Beasts, and the four cards he'd drawn when Kaiba had played Card of Sanctity: Red Gadget, Soul Shield, Magical Pigeons, and Sangan.

Yugi raised an eyebrow. _Sangan_. And Ra's attack was _zero_ until monsters had been sacrificed to summon it….

He allowed himself a satisfied smirk. "I summon Sangan to the field. Then I sacrifice it along with two of Mai's Harpies to special summon the second god of Egypt, Obelisk the Tormentor!"

His friends behind him erupted into cheers as the two Harpies and Sangan dissolved. Lightning flashed around them and a tremendous wind tore at them as if a storm had just blown in. One of the bolts of lightning struck the ground in front of Yugi, filling the field with a flare of blinding light. As the light dimmed, a shadowy figure crouched on the ground like a gargoyle with wings wrapped around it. It slowly unfolded its wing, rising to loom over them, dwarfing everything else in the chamber, including Professor Julius's Ultimate Obedient Fiend and even Slifer the Sky Dragon.

Joey let out a joyous whoop. "YES! Way to go, Yuge! Two gods on the field!"

_And the third in my hand, thanks to Sangan's special effect._ When it was sent from the field to the graveyard, Sangan allowed him to take one monster with fewer than 1500 attack points from his deck and add it to his hand. The catch was, he had to show it to his opponent first.

Kaiba's eyes widened as he watched Yugi carefully before he'd even chosen his card, and Yugi wondered if Professor Julius had also figured out what monster he was after. He met the professor's eyes as he flipped through his deck. "The interesting thing about the Egyptian gods, Professor, is that they all have several effects that make them quite different from most cards. Take Slifer, whose attack can either be very weak or very powerful, all depending on the number of cards its wielder holds in his hand. Or Winged Dragon of Ra. Widely regarded as the most powerful of the three Egyptian gods, and yet, do you know that until it has been correctly summoned by sacrificing three monsters, its attack is zero?" He found the card and pulled it out of his deck, showing it to Julius. "Zero, Professor. The most powerful Egyptian god, and its attack is less than 1500." He slipped the card into his hand. "I wonder, Professor. Do you have what it takes to stop three Egyptian gods?"

Julius sneered at him. "In your hand isn't the same thing as on the field, Mr. Mutou."

"Well, yes. So in the meantime, I'll concentrate on the two gods that are on the field and sacrifice Joey's facedown monster and the remaining Harpie Lady to activate Obelisk's special ability. Obelisk, destroy everything in your path, and take 4000 of the professor's Life Points as well!"

Obelisk bent down and picked up the Harpie and Joey's monster—Rocket Warrior—as if he were a child picking up a pair of action figures. The two sacrifices glowed brilliant white, then disappeared, as Obelisk reared back. Lurching forward, his mammoth fist blew through first Five-Headed Dragon, then Reshef the Dark Being, melting his Ring of Nine Lives on contact, and then finally Professor Julius himself. A cloud of dust rose up, obscuring everything, and Yugi shielded his eyes with his arm.

When the dust cleared, Yugi looked up. Julius was doubled over, reeling from the 4000-point hit that had left him with only 400 Life Points. "And now, Slifer the Sky Dragon, finish him off with Thunderforce Strike!"

"Activate trap!"

In front of the professor, a trap card depicting a sword-wielding knight sprang up, and Five-Headed Dragon reappeared on the field, followed closely behind by Reshef the Dark Being, its Ring of Nine Lives still intact.

"What just happened? What is that?" Yugi heard Mai ask behind him.

But Yugi knew what it was. He'd used the exact same card to defeat the Egyptian god cards once before. He shook his head. "You are quite the scholar, aren't you, Professor? I see you've even managed to study the Ceremonial Battle."

Joey let out an annoyed hiss. "I remember now. Mirage Ruler. You used it to beat the Pharaoh when he played the god cards against you."

Yugi nodded and explained to Mai. "Mirage Ruler can be activated when all its controller's monsters are destroyed. It restores all the monsters that were destroyed and the Life Points that were lost. Professor Julius only has to pay 1000 Life Points." And Yugi could see that his Life Point counter had, in fact, gone back up to 4400, then down to 3400. He looked at his former professor. "How did you know? No records were kept of the Ceremonial Battle. You couldn't have even asked Ishizu without explaining why you cared about 'romantic nonsense.'"

"True enough. But you forget that one of my servants was a witness to the Ceremonial Battle. I have seen the whole thing through his eyes, his memory."

Yugi frowned, then his eyes narrowed. "Marik."

"Right again. Trying to prove you're at least an average student after all?"

"I have nothing to prove to you, _Professor_. And my turn isn't over yet. The return of your monsters to the field triggered a reply, so Slifer the Sky Dragon has yet to attack. He has 6000 attack points—more than enough to take out either of your monsters."

He considered for a moment which one he should attack. Five-Headed Dragon could only be destroyed by a Light-attribute monster, but the god cards were exempt from such limitations, so he could attack and Julius would lose his strongest monster and 1000 more Life Points. Reshef, however, was potentially a more serious threat. Only a god could get past Ring of Nine Lives, and as long as Reshef was on the field, they had to worry about losing their monsters for a turn. Deciding that getting rid of Reshef was their greater priority, he attacked and destroyed it, once again melting through Ring of Nine Lives as if it were nothing more substantial than a chocolate bar on a hot day. When it was over, Reshef the Dark Being was gone and Yugi's battle phase was over. A ghostly hand came out of the professor's grave, taking Yugi's Magical Pigeons card from his hand and sending it to his own graveyard, and then Yugi ended his turn.

_One more turn, Professor. One more turn and I'll have all three god cards on the field, and even if you studied the Ceremonial Battle move for move, you won't defeat them._

Professor Julius clucked his tongue. "Well, well, I am more disappointed with every turn. I would've thought that any true son of Egypt would have been able to crush an opponent with two gods on the field, yet here I stand."

But Yugi saw something behind his boast. _He knows he can't win._

* * *

The moves and monsters had been a little too complicated for Sara to follow, but she could tell Professor Julius had just saved himself from what should have been his defeat. "I hope you can do better, Mr. Kaiba. I was anticipating a little more challenge." He sounded cocky, but Sara knew her mentor—or she'd thought she knew him before all this—and there was something in his voice that belied the brash tone. _He's afraid. Whatever card that was that Yugi got to put into his hand that last turn is something that scares him._ As if he'd read her thoughts, he glanced at her, then turned back to Seto. "I'd hate for my poor protégé to lose her soul to the Shadow Realm without even a real fight."

Seto didn't look at her as he stepped up to the field. "I told you, Julius. Leave her out of this."

"I'm not the one who brought her into this. _I_ wasn't the one who sacrificed a young girl just to control her powerful _Ka_."

Sara wanted to scream. _Stop trying to make me be this other person! I'm not Kisara, I'm not!_

Seto looked ready to spit fire. "That wasn't what happened." He met her eyes briefly, and her horror and anger and denial all melted into an entirely different feeling. Then, he shook his head in a way that she would have described as self-reproach were it anyone other than Seto. "And the ancient past has nothing to do with Sara, and nothing to do with me."

She bit her lip, not sure if she was relieved or disappointed by his disavowal.

Professor Julius wasted no time jumping on Seto's discomfort. "Your denial of the truth would be almost charming if it weren't so pitiful. You stake not only your own soul, but Sara's and your brother's—"

The disquiet was gone in a flash of protective fury. "You deal with _me_, not my brother, do you understand me, you pathetic loser?"

"Kaiba…" Yugi warned, turning to flash him an admonishing look as he brushed past.

The professor was livid. "Loser, am I? Not one, but _two_ Egyptian gods failed to defeat me!"

"You're a hack who copies moves from better duelists, but those kind of tricks only take you so far. Just ask Wheeler." Seto cocked his thumb in Joey's direction.

"Hey! Watch it, Moneybags—"

Seto continued his rant unabated. "I mean seriously, even _he_ kicked your worthless ass the last turn. You're a pathetic _nobody_. Now let's get on with it before I die of boredom."

"It isn't boredom you should worry about killing you, Mr. Kaiba."

Something sour turned in Sara's stomach. "Seto, no!"

The atmosphere crackled with electricity as Ultimate Obedient Fiend drew on the ions in the air around them to charge itself. Before Sara could even realize what was happening, Yugi, who hadn't yet left the field, grabbed Seto's arm and pulled him back as hard as he could. Although Seto had a good nine inches and somewhere in the neighborhood of fifty pounds on him, he'd been so caught off-guard that he was thrown off balance and onto the edge of the field as Yugi pivoted on his boot heel and almost toppled onto him.

Then the blast hit, a shockwave of lightning slamming into Yugi's back, knocking him clear off his feet and into Seto, sending them both flying to the ground as Sara started screaming. "NOOOOO!"


	9. One Down

**9. One Down**

"YUGI!" Téa threw herself against the invisible barrier that separated her from the field, barely feeling the force of her head hitting against it as she watched the blast of electricity from Ultimate Obedient Fiend slam into Yugi and toss him like a rag doll into Kaiba. "YUGI, NO!"

The rest was a disjointed blur. There was the smell of ozone and something like burnt hair and the sound of other voices screaming, calling out Yugi's name, or Kaiba's. Joey dove for them, but Julius shouted out that he couldn't be on the field when it wasn't his turn, and Mai had to hold him back while he let out a string of profanity. Kaiba, meanwhile, had managed to extricate himself from underneath Yugi and was trying to struggle to his feet. He looked battered, like he hadn't escaped the attack completely and was having trouble getting his muscles to start obeying him again. She heard Mokuba let out a gurgled cry in Japanese, asking his brother if he was okay.

Joey was still screaming at Julius. "You goddamn fucking _bastard_, I'm going to KILL YOU, do you understand me? Now let me help my friend!"

"You step one foot on that field out of turn, and you forfeit the duel!"

"What are we supposed to do, just leave him there? We don't even know if he's—"

Téa felt a sob strangle in her throat as Joey cut himself off.

"Wheeler, shut up!" That was Kaiba, sounding a little more breathless and less disdainful than usual. He was crouching down beside Yugi. "He's not dead; he's just unconscious."

Téa's legs almost turned to water and suddenly she felt arms wrap around her from behind, keeping her on her feet. "It's gonna be all right, he's gonna be fine." Tristan.

Joey looked like he was going to burst a blood vessel, however. "JUST unconscious? This is the FUCKING SHADOW REALM! There's no such thing as 'just' unconscious, you moron!"

"Please, whelp, do control yourself." Julius looked so pleased with himself that Téa would've made another try at the barrier just to claw the skin off his face if Tristan hadn't been holding her so tightly. Julius crossed his arms. "His soul hasn't been taken—yet."

Joey lunged again, and Mai had to grab him by the back of his jacket to keep him back.

"I really shouldn't expect any sense from a guttersnipe like you, but I would've thought your previous experiences with Dark Games would give you some perspective. Your friend is injured, but his soul is not lost. Now, we really do need to get on with the duel… unless you'd like to forfeit."

"Forfeit? To a parasite like you? Not likely!" Kaiba staggered to his feet. "I'm ready whenever you are."

Joey made a growling sound that was almost feral. "Yeah, don't let a little thing like _Yugi's unconscious body lying on the field_ get in the way of the _game_."

"You can remove him from the field," Julius said, as if he were deigning to grant them some magnanimous favor.

"I can't go _on_ the field!"

"Oh, for the love of…" Kaiba bent down and gathered up the five cards that had scattered from Yugi's hand, then hauled Yugi up over his shoulders in a fireman's carry. He looked unsteady, like he could barely manage to support his own weight, let alone Yugi's, but he managed to make his way to the edge of the playing area where Joey was waiting. Joey took Yugi and his cards from Kaiba and carried him, cradled in his arms, over to Yugi's area of the "bench," setting him down gently right next to the barrier where Téa and Tristan were standing. Téa sunk to her knees and put her hand out against the force field where Yugi was. Serenity and Mokuba gathered around them on their side of the wall while Mai knelt down beside Joey on the other side. Joey laid the five cards from Yugi's hand facedown beside the Duel Disk still attached to his left arm.

"Is he okay?" Mokuba asked, and Téa was grateful someone else had, because she didn't think she could form the words.

Joey shrugged and looked at Serenity. "What do I do?"

"Is his pulse strong?"

Joey felt Yugi's neck for a moment, then nodded. "Yeah, seems okay."

"And he's breathing okay?"

He nodded again.

"I… crap, I wish this barrier wasn't here. I don't think there's anything else we can do. I can't summon Mystical Elf because we haven't figured out the key yet, and even if I could, I'm on the wrong side of the wall."

Téa closed her eyes. "Yugi…"

* * *

Mai squeezed Joey's shoulder, feeling utterly helpless as she watched him bend over his motionless friend. Behind her, she heard Julius clear his throat. "All right, the boy is off the field. Take your turn or forfeit, Mr. Kaiba."

"Gladly. The sooner I finish you, the sooner we can get the hell out of here."

"You'd better hope you can finish this, Mr. Kaiba, because without Mr. Mutou, your team is in a great deal of trouble." The unrestrained glee in Julius's voice had Mai imagining the different kinds of pain she could inflict with her spikiest-heeled boots.

Kaiba snorted. "Not hardly. I don't need Yugi Mutou or anyone else to beat you into oblivion."

That set Joey off once more, and he jumped up facing the field. "You sure as hell needed him to save your sorry ass from frying! This'd be you if he hadn't pulled you out of the way, you ungrateful son of a bitch! This is your fault! You just couldn't keep your big fat mouth shut!"

"Oh, that's rich, coming from you!"

"_Me?_ I mean, I know you only care about the sound of your own voice, but were you _completely_ not paying attention when not _five minutes ago_ Yugi said he'd pull exactly this? I didn't say a _word_ during my turn because I don't have shit for brains!"

"I'd dispute that!"

Mai jumped to her feet before Joey could make another lunge, this time for Kaiba. She hauled him backwards by his jacket. "You _both_ have shit for brains, you know that? Do you even get what's going on here? Yugi didn't just save Kaiba, he saved _all_ of us. If that had been Kaiba, we'd be _done_, but Yugi bought us three more turns. _Three turns_." She held up three fingers for emphasis. "'Cause if we don't get this bastard before Yugi's next turn and he doesn't wake up…."

Joey's eyes widened as the big picture finally started to sink in. "And only he can use the god cards for anything other than defense and automatic effects like Slifer's second mouth. And Ra isn't doing us any good in his hand, either."

"We don't need three turns, and we don't need the god cards," Kaiba insisted. "I'm taking him down _this_ turn."

"Then stop wasting your energy fighting with _each other_," Mai said, shaking Joey's shoulder in her irritation with both of them. "Save it for the _enemy_."

* * *

Turning his back to Wheeler and Valentine, Kaiba tried to block out everything but the duel. I don't need them, _I don't need Yugi, I can beat him myself. Just me and Blue-Eyes…._ He had to force himself not to look at Sara. _Focus on the_ duel.

It was harder than he would've liked to admit, however. Yugi may have taken the bulk of Ultimate Obedient Fiend's attack, but Kaiba hadn't gone unscathed. He felt like he'd just wrestled with an electric eel and had only won by default. As he reached for his deck to draw, his hand was shaking in a way that was very disconcerting.

_I can do this, I don't need them, just me and my Blue-Eyes…._

He drew Pot of Greed and played it to get two more cards: Riryoku and White Dragon Ritual. Bingo. With Paladin of White Dragon already in his hand—along with Fusion Recovery, Premature Burial, Battle Ox, Cost Down, and Card of Safe Return—he was back in business.

"I now will use the White Dragon Ritual, sacrificing Battle Ox from my hand, to summon Paladin of White Dragon." The white armor-clad knight mounted on a blue-white dragon similar to but smaller than Blue-Eyes had barely appeared when he was already sacrificing it. "And by offering my Paladin of White Dragon as a tribute, I can summon my third Blue-Eyes White Dragon from my deck!"

Julius rolled his eyes. "I know you fancy your Blue-Eyes rather a lot, but it can't attack the same turn it's special-summoned by sacrificing Paladin of White Dragon, and even if it could, it isn't strong enough to defeat Five-Headed Dragon."

"I'm not finished yet." He played Card of Safe Return, a continuous magic card that would allow him to draw a card every time he special-summoned a monster from the graveyard. "And I'll pay 800 Life Points to use Premature Burial to bring back my second Blue-Eyes White Dragon from the graveyard. And I assure you that she is more than able to attack this turn."

"Yet still 2000 attack points short."

"Not for long." Kaiba drew another card, Dark Blade, as his Life Points went down to 1200. "And finally I summon Dark Blade to the field, and play Riryoku. Expert that you are, you are familiar with Riryoku, right, Julius?" When the professor didn't answer, Kaiba continued, dripping contempt. "I'll take your silence as yet more evidence of your complete lack of ability. Riryoku will halve the attack of one monster until the end of the turn, and will also increase the attack of another monster by the same amount. That leaves your Five-Headed Dragon with 2500 attack points, while my second Blue-Eyes has 5500. Get ready to lose 3000 Life Points, _Professor_."

"I don't think so. Activate De-Fusion!" Five-Headed Dragon swirled into a mass of white, black, red, gold, and green color, then separated into five separate dragons: Harpie's Pet Dragon, Red-Eyes Black Dragon, Curse of Dragon, Dragon Dwelling in the Cave, and Blue-Eyes White Dragon.

"Congratulations. You now have five very weak dragons, thanks to Slifer's second mouth."

Julius sneered. "I'm well aware of Slifer's second mouth. I am calling these five dragons in defense mode. My Chorus of Sanctuary field card gives all defense monsters an additional 500 defense points before Slifer's second mouth attacks."

Each of the five dragons knelt down on the field and was boosted 500 points by Chorus of Sanctuary. Slifer then attacked them in turn, taking 2000 defense points from each of them, leaving Harpie's Pet Dragon and Blue-Eyes with 1000 defense points each, Red-Eyes Black Dragon and Dragon Dwelling in the Cave with 500 a piece, and Curse of Dragon barely surviving with zero defense points.

Kaiba smiled. "You made a fatal mistake, Julius. You're about to see what someone who really knows how to handle Blue-Eyes White Dragon can do! Dark Blade, attack Red-Eyes Black Dragon, and my Blue-Eyes White Dragon, take out his Blue-Eyes!" Kaiba's two monsters attacked Julius's two dragons, sending them both to the graveyard.

"Your battle phase is now over, which means it's time for Helpoemer to thin out your hand."

Kaiba grimaced—he'd forgotten that card. He only had two cards left in his hand: Cost Down and Fusion Recovery. If he lost Fusion Recovery….

The ghostly hand came from Julius's grave and reached toward his hand… latching onto Cost Down. Kaiba flashed Julius a triumphant grin. Now that his first Blue-Eyes was separated from those other, lesser dragons and in the graveyard…. "Sorry, your Helpoemer took the wrong card, Julius. So before I end my turn, I'll play Fusion Recovery to bring one monster that was used in making a fusion monster and Polymerization to my hand."

Behind him, Mokuba cried out, knowing what was coming. "YES, _Nii-sama_!"

"With Polymerization, I'll fuse the Blue-Eyes White Dragon in my hand with two Blue-Eyes White Dragons on the field to form one of the most indomitable creatures in all of Duel Monsters—Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon!"

His three Blue-Eyes swirled together in a flare of blue and white, until a silvery, three-headed dragon emerged to stand beside Dark Blade. With 4500 attack points, it truly was one of the most impressive monsters in the game.

Julius clapped his hands in a slow staccato. His voice dripping with sarcasm, he said, "Well done, Mr. Kaiba. But it seems you fell short of defeating me. Your turn is over, I still have three monsters on the field, and your Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, imposing though it may be, can only attack under _your_ command. Unfortunately, barring a miraculous recovery by your young teammate, you won't get another turn. Not that it matters. Because now it's my turn. This duel is over."


	10. Substitution

**10. Substitution**

Sara stared at the three-headed White Dragon on the field, her dragon dreams playing through her mind as if she'd just dreamt them. It was tempting to tell herself this was just another dream—it was rather similar to so many of the dream battles she'd fought, after all, down to the eerie purple mist and the semi-familiar monsters. Even the way Seto moved and called his attacks was so _familiar_, so similar to every dragon dream she had during those three years when the dreams came so frequently. But never in those dreams was she ever herself, a prisoner trapped behind an invisible wall. Always she was the White Dragon, fighting with amazing strength and grace. She felt so helpless trapped here, watching others fight and not even really understanding what they were fighting for. Not to mention the fact that her own mentor was the enemy, Seto was hurt and Yugi was hurt worse, and she didn't understand that, either, except that if he didn't wake up again by the time it came around to his turn, the duel was over.

_There has to be something I can _do_, some way to stop him._

But all she could do was watch and wait and hope for an opportunity to something—_anything_—to end the nightmare so she could wake up.

* * *

Joey was only dimly aware of the duel continuing behind him—his attention was fixed solely on his motionless friend beside whom he crouched. He didn't even realize Kaiba had finished his turn until Mai swore and then put her hand on his shoulder. "Come on, hon, it's Julius's turn. We gotta be ready for him."

Joey curled his lip and glared at Kaiba. "What's a matter, rich boy? I thought you were gonna finish him for us."

Kaiba said nothing, but Mai shook her head and gripped Joey's shoulder harder than was strictly necessary. "Same team…"

Joey growled in frustration. "I got it, I got it."

"Come on, we're gonna need all three of us to counter whatever he's got planned for us," Mai said, pulling him up by the arm. "Yugi didn't have any spell or trap cards set, so he couldn't have helped us here anyway."

"But we can't just leave him lying here!"

"Go, _Onii-chan_," Serenity said from the other side of the invisible wall. "We'll watch over him."

Joey gave a stiff nod, then headed for his usual spot on the "bench" between Mai and the place where Yugi was lying. He looked across the field to Julius. "Bring it on, Prof." With Shift, Desert Sunlight, and Graceful Dice in his spell and trap section, plus three facedown cards in Mai's section and one in Kaiba's, he was confident they had a good strong defense.

"I intend to." Julius drew a card and slipped it into his hand. Pulling a different card out, he beamed at them. "At the cost of 800 Life Points, I play Fulfillment of the Contract, which will bring back one Ritual Monster from the graveyard."

Joey groaned along with his teammates. Reshef.

Julius snorted. "I see you clever lot has worked out what's next. With Fulfillment of the Contract, I call forth Reshef the Dark Being from the graveyard—in defense mode."

"Slifer," Mai reminded him.

"Yes, yes. Once again Chorus of Sanctuary will give Reshef an additional 500 defense points, which is just enough to keep him on the field despite Slifer's second mouth attack." Julius's Life Points dropped to 2600 as he paid the 800 to use Fulfillment of the Contract, and Reshef materialized on the field, kneeling in place. Chorus of Sanctuary brought him to 2000 defense points, then Slifer's second mouth attacked, bringing him down to zero—but still on the field and once more able to use his effect, which is exactly what Julius did next. "Sacrificing one spell card from my hand, I activate Reshef's special ability to take control of Obelisk the Tormentor!"

"Not quite!" Kaiba waved his hand and one of his facedown cards sprang up. "Interdimensional Matter Transporter, remove Obelisk the Tormentor from the field for one turn!"

Julius glared at him. "Trap cards can't be used on the gods!"

"Trap cards can't be used _against_ the gods," Kaiba corrected. "Obelisk can _choose_ to let Interdimensional Matter Transporter take him."

Joey raised his eyebrows at Kaiba. "Nice move!"

The complement seemed to startle Kaiba. He gave Joey an irritated look as a huge, spiky, metallic machine appeared around Obelisk, then vanished, taking Obelisk with it.

"Fine. Then Reshef will take control of Slifer the Sky Dragon instead."

Joey wished for a moment that he could use Shift to change the target of monster effects in addition to spells, traps, and battle attacks, but then he looked at Julius's hand and laughed. "In case you haven't noticed, you've only got one card in your hand. That means Slifer will only have 1000 attack points!"

Slifer dissolved from their side of the field and reappeared opposite them, with 1000 attack points just as Joey had said. Julius seemed untroubled by this, however. "Fortunately for me, that one card is Card of Demise, which lets me draw until I have five cards in my hand. Now, it does stipulate that I must discard my entire hand after five turns, but seeing as this will be the last turn of the duel, it's a risk I'm willing to take."

Joey bit back a curse as Julius drew five cards, bringing Slifer to 5000 attack points.

"Ah, and here's another card that will be of value to Slifer." He played Pot of Avarice, which took five monsters from his graveyard—Ameba, Ryu Kokki, Senju of the Thousand Hands, Manju of the Ten Thousand Hands, and Pyramid Turtle—and combined them with his deck. He then shuffled and drew two cards, giving him six cards in his hand and Slifer 6000 attack points.

Joey braced for the attack. Any or all of his three facedown cards could protect Kaiba's Life Points and maybe even save Dark Blade or Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, their two remaining monsters on the field. Coupled with whatever three facedown cards Mai had, he was sure they'd survive the attack.

But then Julius did something unexpected. Instead of attacking, he played Mystic Wok, reducing Slifer's attack to 5000. "Mystic Wok allows me to sacrifice one monster and add its attack points to my Life Points, so I choose to sacrifice Slifer the Sky Dragon!"

Joey's jaw dropped, and he heard several gasps of surprise from beside and behind him.

"You're sacrificing an Egyptian god?" Kaiba sounded even more incredulous than he'd looked when Joey had actually complimented him.

Julius's lips curled into a sour grin. "With the princess and her whelp having six facedown cards between them, I have no doubt they can protect your Life Points and possibly Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon. Even gods aren't invincible, as young Mr. Mutou learned before his unfortunate _accident_."

"Accident my ass," Joey grumbled under his breath.

"And why use Slifer for one turn only to hand him back to you at the end when instead I can use him to my more permanent benefit." With that, Slifer disappeared, and Julius's Life Points climbed to a daunting 7600.

Joey exchanged glances with Mai. _7600 Life Points. How in the hell do we get him down to zero in two more turns?_

"Next, I'll play my Offerings to the Doomed magic card, which destroys one monster on the field. I'll have to skip my next Draw Phase as a cost, but seeing as we won't get that far…. Say good-bye to Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon."

_Now_ Joey could use Shift. "I think we'll keep the Dragon. You can have Dark Blade."

Julius barely blinked. "Fine. Then I activate Emergency Provisions, which allows me to convert my trap and spell cards into 1000 Life Points per card. I'll sacrifice Ultimate Offering to bring me to 8600 Life Points. Then I'll play my four remaining cards facedown." He emptied his hand and four facedown cards appeared on the field in the trap or spell spots. "Now I believe it's your move."

Interdimensional Matter Transporter returned to the field and then disappeared, leaving Obelisk the Tormentor standing beside Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon.

Joey swallowed. 8600 Life Points and only two turns to get rid of them. He looked at Mai. _Baby, I hope you have a plan, or we're all screwed._

* * *

Beside Téa, Tristan groaned. "Oh man. _8600_ Life Points? How the hell are they supposed to get rid of 8600 Life Points in two turns? I hope Mai has a plan, or we're screwed."

"She will," Serenity said.

Téa tried to push the worry about how the duel was going to the back of her mind so she could focus her attention on Yugi. _Come on, Yugi, wake up! We need you. _I _need you, and not just to keep us in the duel for a few more turns. Please wake up…._

"I don't know," Mokuba said, his voice heavy with skepticism. "Her trump card is Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation, which is an awesome card, but she doesn't even have any Harpies on the field, and even if she did, the Phoenix Formation couldn't take out all his monsters or all his Life Points, especially with those monsters having almost no attack points left for Phoenix Formation to work with. I don't see how they can do it with just her and Joey left."

"They can do it," Serenity insisted.

"Still, I'd feel a lot better if Yugi were awake and we had a few more turns available," Tristan said.

Serenity growled in frustration. "If I could just figure out how to summon Mystical Elf."

Out of the corner of her eye, Téa saw Tristan pull Serenity into a one-armed embrace. "Even if you could, the barrier…" He pounded it with his free fist. "Dammit. If only they allowed substitutions! Mokuba duels. He could go in and play for Yugi, and with Obelisk…."

Téa's eyes widened as her mind locked onto a single word. _Substitution_. She looked up at Tristan. "What did you say?"

"I said it's too bad they don't allow substitutions, or we could send Mokuba or someone in instead."

She stood up and started talking quickly, her voice low so it wouldn't carry to the field. "But we _did_ see a duel where there was a substitution. And it was a Shadow Game, too!"

Tristan frowned. "Come again?"

But Téa wasn't really talking to him anymore. "And the Orichalcos duel, too…."

"You wanna clue us in here?" Tristan dropped his arm from Serenity's shoulder and scratched the back of his head, confused.

Téa heard Yugi's voice in her head. _I've been his substitute before._ And if Yugi could _be_ the substitute… it had to work both ways, didn't it? Her eyes took in the swirling shadows surrounding them. They were in the Shadow Realm, and Yugi had been able to summon him when he was there in that nightmare Dark Game….

"Téa?"

But how had he done it? What had he said? _I called for him when he separated out from me. Eew…_ something. Téa frowned, thinking hard. It had been Egyptian, that's what he'd said. He'd called out in Egyptian. _It's like a summoning._

"Téa, what are you talking about? We've never seen a duel where they let in a substitution. It's against the rules."

She blinked at Tristan. "Yes, we have. Duelist Kingdom, the Orichalcos—_Yugi_ had a substitute."

Tristan's eyes went wide. "You mean the— _Atem?_ But how's that gonna help us now? He's—"

"In the Shadow Realm, same as us."

"Wait." He took a step back, stunned. "What are you saying? You think—"

"I don't think, I _know_. Tristan, Yugi _saw_ him, when he was in that nightmare Dark Game, after he got separated from Joey. He said he'd actually summoned him, by calling out for him in Egyptian. 'Hark, come to me,' or something like that. Yugi needed him, and he _came_. And we need him now. _Yugi_ needs him."

Tristan shook his head, trying to absorb what she was telling him. "You're telling me that Yugi actually saw him. The real him. In the Shadow Realm."

She nodded.

"He summoned him like a Duel Monster."

"He didn't mean to, I don't think. He was all messed up from the mind games Ramesses was playing on him, and all that business about not being sure which of them he really was. He just needed him, so he called out in Egyptian without even thinking, and he came."

Tristan took a moment to let this filter through. "That's why he's been more back to normal since that duel. Because he got to see Atem again."

"Mm hm."

"And you think maybe if we call for him in Egyptian, we can summon him, too? And that he could duel in Yugi's place?"

She nodded again. "I'm sure he could play in Yugi's place, otherwise they never could've beaten Pegasus in Duelist Kingdom by switching places back and forth like they did. And the three of us—you, me, and Joey—we did have kind of a bond to him. Not like Yugi, but still, I think we could call for him and he'd come. Especially if it's for Yugi."

"Yeah, only one problem. We don't know Egyptian."

Téa looked out across the field to where Sara was watching as Mai began her turn. "No, but she does."

Tristan followed her gaze. "Sara…."

Mokuba and Serenity had both been behind Tristan, listening, and now Mokuba knocked on the barrier. "But she's all the way across the field with two barriers between us and her."

Téa looked around the chamber they were in, trying to take in everything under the shadowy mists that surrounded them. "Maybe there's only one barrier around the field, and we can walk around it on the outside to get to her."

Mokuba nodded and started walking along the force field to circle around to Sara's side of the room. He hadn't gone far, however, when he stopped short. "OW!"

"You okay?" Serenity asked.

"Yeah, but I just ran into another wall. I think we're caged in, like a baseball dugout or something."

"There has to be a way to the other side," Tristan said. He started feeling his way around the invisible wall. He got to where Mokuba had stopped, then felt his way around behind them, hitting another wall on the other side. With a grunt of frustration, he dropped his hands. "No go. Mokuba's right, we're boxed in."

"So who else knows Egyptian?" Serenity asked.

Téa thought about it. "Yugi, but that's no help." She looked at the field. "Kaiba!"

Mokuba shook his head. "No, he doesn't really know Egyptian, I don't think. He can read the hieroglyphics and junk, but I don't think he can actually speak it or translate something _into_ Egyptian." He ground his teeth in frustration. "There has to be some other way."

"Too bad Rebecca's not here," Serenity said. "Or the Ishtars."

Tristan gave Serenity a curious look, then cocked his head and started at Téa. "Maybe there is a way. Someone else _is_ here, sorta. Or could be, anyway."

Téa frowned. "Why are you looking at me?"

"'Cause you're the one who can get him here."

"Who?"

Tristan arched an eyebrow at her. "Marik."


	11. Contact

**11. Contact**

Bakura reeled as Marik took a full 1900 points worth of damage when Ishizu activated Judgment of Anubis to counter his Mystical Space Typhoon magic card. Instead of Marik destroying Ishizu's Sword of Dogra as planned, she negated Mystical Space Typhoon and sent his Swallow Tail Lizard to the graveyard, inflicting damage equal to Swallow Tail Lizard's attack points. He now had only 1500 Life Points. At least he had gained 1000 points from its special ability before it was destroyed—he had summoned Swallow Tail Lizard during his last turn, and its effect boosted him 1000 points during each of his standby phases. On the field, he had Lord Poison in attack mode and Revival Jam in defense mode, plus Jam Defender and two facedown cards. Ishizu had 2100 Life Points, Spiria in defense mode, and Zolga—equipped with Sword of Dogra—and Agido in attack mode. There was nothing left for him to do, so he ended his turn.

Ishizu drew a card, then played it, summoning Sonic Bird to the field.

In Bakura's head, he could hear Marik's thoughts. _Sonic Bird. That's not a card Ishizu has ever had. Interesting._

From the side of the garden, Odion echoed his concerns. "Be careful, Marik. That card does not belong to Ishizu."

"Yes, I know. Finally getting to your 'master's' cards, are we, Sister?"

Ishizu smiled, and Bakura mentally nudged Marik. _You know what its special ability is, right?_

_Of course. I believe this duel is about to get interesting._

"First, I'll use Spiria's special ability to look at one of your facedown cards." She chose one of his two cards, and it revealed itself to her—the trap card Spirit Shield.

_One of your cards, Ry, _Marik observed. _I wonder if she'll notice._

If she did, she didn't comment. "And now, with Sonic Bird's special ability, I can retrieve one ritual spell card from my deck and add it to my hand." Bakura could feel Marik's anticipation as she played the ritual spell card. "Then I'll sacrifice Sonic Bird and Agido to perform the Final Ritual of the Ancients and summon Reshef the Dark Being!"

Bakura hadn't ever seen Reshef the Dark Being in a duel before, let alone a Dark Game, so he was rather taken aback by its dramatic summoning, with the bright light from the Final Ritual of the Ancients tablet and the loud humming sound and rushing wind.

Marik was less impressed. _Cheap theatrics. There are much more powerful cards than Reshef the Dark Being._

Bakura thought about Téa and the description he'd heard of Reshef's attack on her. _Things are different in the Shadow Realm, Marik._

_Yes, but the shadows are _our_ domain, Ry._

Bakura balked at this, but he knew Marik was right. _Is it time for me to step in? We have everything on the field and in your hand that we need._

_Yes, but if we use Witch of the Black Forest, we have to show her the card we choose before we play it. It could tip our hand._

Bakura thought about this a moment. True. _But she didn't seem to notice Spirit Shield. With Ramesses pulling the strings, she might miss the significance._

Marik didn't have time to answer because Ishizu discarded one spell card from her hand to use Reshef's special ability to take control of Marik's Revival Jam. With Revival Jam off his side of the field, Jam Defender was useless, and she was free to attack his Lord of Poison, so she sent Zolga with her Sword of Dogra to do the job.

"Not so fast, Sister. I activate my instant magic card Hidden Soldier, which allows me to return one monster on my side of the field to my hand and summon a different level four or lower monster to replace it. Lord of Poison, return to me, and in its place, I play Witch of the Black Forest in defense mode."

Zolga attacked and destroyed Black Witch of the Forest, then Ishizu sent Reshef in for the direct attack, but Marik activated his other facedown card, Spirit Shield, which prevented all battle damage so long as he removed one monster in his graveyard from play. He eliminated Gilgarth, then used Black Witch of the Forest's special ability to go through his deck and add one monster with a defense of less than 1500 to his hand. Fortunately for them, the card they wanted had only 1200 defense points. Marik found the card, then showed it to Ishizu before adding it to his hand.

Diabound.

* * *

Mai stepped up to the field to take her turn, looking expectantly at Julius. 

"Is there a reason you aren't drawing, Ms. Valentine?"

"What, no guardian? You've summoned a new guardian at the beginning of every one of my turns."

"Because you were the first player."

"Yeah, I figured that out."

"I'm quite content with Ultimate Obedient Fiend. Now shall we get on with it?"

Mai reached for her deck, praying that she would draw the right card. 8600 Life Points was a lot to get rid of in only two turns, but if she could draw her Phoenix Formation, they could get a good start. _Come on, Heart of the Cards, I need my Harpies, I need my Phoenix Formation, please let it be the next card… _She closed her eyes as she drew, praying, then opened and looked at the results.

Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation.

_Thank you._

She smiled at Julius. "I'm in the mood for a party. A Hysteric Party, to be exact." She activated her Hysteric Party spell card. "By discarding one card from my hand, I can special summon as many of my Harpie Ladies as possible from the graveyard, so I'll take all three of my Cyber Harpies back, thank you." She discarded Stamping Destruction and her three Harpies appeared beside Obelisk and Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon. "And now, Professor, here's a little trick my Harpies can do that you might remember from our little dream duel. Time to form up in Phoenix Formation, Ladies!"

"YES!" Joey pounded his fist into his hand. "I knew it! Way to go, Mai!"

She winked at him as she played the Phoenix Formation. Her three Harpies stood together and started glowing electric blue. A ghostly flaming bird flew from their midst and headed toward Julius's side of the field as Mai directed it to attack Curse of Dragon, her captured Harpie's Pet Dragon, and Reshef the Dark Being. It annihilated all three of them with ease and gave Julius 500 points of direct damage—the combined attack points of the three destroyed monsters. It would've been more had Slifer not reduced all the monsters' attack points when they were summoned, but Mai would take what she could get. Julius was still at 8100 Life Points, but he only had Dragon Dwelling in the Cave left to defend them. With three Harpies at 1800 apiece, she could get rid of the remaining monster and take another 3600 Life Points, then hopefully Joey could do the rest. "Attack his Dragon Dwelling in the Cave, Cyber Harpie number one!"

"I activate my Mirror Force Trap card!"

Mai swallowed. Not only would Mirror Force block the attack, it would destroy all of their monsters in attack mode—and every one of their monsters were in attack mode, including the formidable Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon. Only Obelisk would be spared, as trap cards were useless against god cards.

"Activate Desert Sunlight!" At Joey's command, one of his facedown cards sprang up, depicting an Egyptian temple under a blinding sun. All of their monsters —Mai's Harpies, Kaiba's Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, and even Yugi's Obelisk since once again the trap was being used for it instead of against it—went into defense mode, saving them from Mirror Force's effect. Not only that, but Julius's Chorus of Sanctuary gave them each an additional 500 defense points, leaving the Harpies with 1800 each, Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon with 4300, and Obelisk with 4500.

Mai beamed. "Nice save, hon!"

Even Kaiba gave Joey a small nod. Not a smile, not a compliment; just the barest of acknowledgements. But from Kaiba—to _Joey_—it was like an entire ballad of praise.

"A nice save indeed, Wheeler." Julius offered him a nod of his own. "But you'll find that still leaves me with 8100 Life Points, and you only have one move left. Oh, and Ms. Valentine, Helpoemer will be taking that last card in your hand now that your battle phase is over."

The ghost hand did indeed take her last card, Amazoness Spellcaster, and send it to her graveyard, ending Mai's turn. As she passed Joey on her way off the field, she put her hand on his arm. "It's all up to you, hon."

He nodded, looking more nervous than she'd ever seen him, which was saying a lot. She squeezed his arm in silent support and was about to head back to her place on the "bench" when something off field caught her eye. Tristan, Téa, Serenity, and Mokuba were grouped together in what looked like a team huddle. _What are they up to?_

Joey started to pull his arm away to take his position on the field, but she squeezed it again, stopping him. Leaning close, she whispered, "If you can't beat him, stall."

He frowned at her. "Thanks for the vote of confidence."

"No, it's just that… don't look, but I think the cheerleaders may have hatched some sort of plan. We need to buy them some time."

* * *

Téa blinked. "What?"

"Can you even do that?" Serenity asked.

"Why not?" Tristan answered for her. "The whole reason that he can get into her head even without the Millennium Rod is because of the 'pathway' he'd already left there before, like a piece of him in her head or something."

"Ew, thank you!" Téa shook her head. "What am I, a Jedi Knight? I'm supposed to use the Force to call him?"

"I don't know. You're the one he can talk through, not me!"

"If you're gonna try, you better do it quickly," Mokuba said, glancing toward the field. "Joey's up. If he doesn't win and Yugi's not awake by the time his turn's over…."

Serenity put her hand on Téa's shoulder. "What did it feel like when he took you over?"

Téa shrugged. "I don't know. Like… like a dream. You know, when you have no control over what you're doing, you just sort of watch from inside your own head?"

Serenity nodded. "Try concentrating on that feeling, on how it felt when he took over, not by force, but when you let him in. Find that part of your brain where he burrowed in."

"Ew! Would you people please stop talking about my _brain_ that way?" But she closed her eyes, following Serenity's suggestion. She tried to feel what it had been like to have him take her over, controlling her arms and her feet, moving her like a marionette. She tried to remember the spark she'd felt when he'd bumped into her in the diner, when even unconscious he'd grabbed her arm in Duke's bedroom. _Marik… I need your help. Please…._

* * *

_You were right, Marik, _Bakura thought as Ishizu didn't give Diabound so much as a second glance. _She isn't attaching much importance to Diabound._

_He does only have 1800 attack points. Not as outwardly powerful as some of the other heavy-hitters of Duel Monsters. Now we just have to—_ Marik cut off abruptly and Bakura frowned, sensing his sudden distraction.

_Marik?_

There was no response, and then Bakura had the sensation of being suddenly slammed into his own body. While it was a relief to feel his own limbs and to be able move by his own will, Marik's sudden and unexpected departure was alarming. _Marik?_

"I end my turn, Brother," Ishizu said. "Your Jam Defender can come back to you."

Bakura blinked, confused. He'd been watching the duel closely, anticipating taking over from Marik as soon as they played Diabound, but he was thrown by the abrupt way he'd been given control again.

Odion noticed the change. "Marik?"

Bakura nodded, afraid to speak lest he give away too soon that it was he and not Marik in control. Trying to clamp down on the panic over Marik's whereabouts that was starting to overcome him, he forced himself to focus on the task at hand. _Draw first, then get Diabound on the field._ He reached for his deck, his hand closing on the top card when as suddenly as he'd left, Marik's presence returned. Bakura had to bite back a gasp. _Marik?_

_Ry?_

Bakura let out a long, relieved breath. _What happened?_

_It's Téa. She needs my help, but with my body unconscious and unable to anchor my mind, I can't be in multiple minds at the same time. As soon as I focused my attention on her, I lost you._

Bakura tried to make sense of this. _Wait. Téa? How did you know she needed you?_

He could sense Marik's mental shrug. _I'm not really sure. It was like she was calling for me._

Bakura pushed back his discomfort with the fact that Marik could get into Téa's head just as easily as he could Bakura's own. _What does she need?_

_I'm not sure. I was only there for a moment. They're in the ceremonial chamber of my childhood home, I think. In a Dark Game with Ramesses, but I wasn't there long enough to figure out what was going on. When I realized I'd lost you, I turned my attention back here and lost her._

"It's your turn, Brother. Or are you conceding?"

Marik took full control of Bakura to snap at Ishizu. "So long as you're under that bastard's control, I concede nothing to you, Sister. On the contrary, I already hold the cards I need to defeat you—and _him_."

Bakura looked at the Diabound card in his hand—a card he hadn't used or even looked at in three years. A card he'd never used on his own at all. It was the Spirit of the Ring's card, and one he didn't want to so much as look at again, let alone hold in his hand and use in a duel. But he'd kept it, and now it brought a memory flashing through his mind. He was standing on a rooftop surrounded by the purple mist of the Shadow Realm, facing Seto Kaiba in a duel. Kaiba had Blue-Eyes White Dragon, formidable as always with 3000 attack points, but Bakura had Diabound, which had been powered up to 3300 attack points thanks to the effect of his Mirror Tablet. Diabound attacked…

_Mission accomplished._

As suddenly as it had come, the vision was gone, replaced by Ishizu standing across the garden from him, Zolga, Spiria, and Reshef the Dark Being forming a vanguard before her. Had he been in control of his body, Bakura would have smiled. _Marik, go to Téa. I can take it from here._

He could feel Marik's hesitation. _I know you were about to take over anyway, but not alone. I want to be here—_

_It'll be fine. Odion is here._

_Remember what Yugi said about touchstones? Odion is _my_ touchstone, not yours. He won't be able to help you if the Orichalcos—_

_The Orichalcos has no power over me. You said yourself, the Shadow Realm is my domain. Now go, help Téa, and leave Ishizu and Reshef to me._

There was another moment of hesitation, and then he felt Marik's release. _I'll be back as soon as I can. I love you, Ry._

Bakura, back in full control of his body, nodded. _I know._


	12. The Last Move

**12. The Last Move**

Sara knew that Joey was entering the field and that this was their last turn unless Yugi miraculously recovered from whatever that red demon did to him, but her attention wasn't focused on the game, it was focused beyond it, to the other side of the field where Mokuba, Téa, Serenity, and Tristan were grouped together in some sort of intense discussion. Earlier, she could have sworn they were looking at her and maybe even trying to get to her—she'd watched as they'd felt around the confines of their invisible prison trying to find a way out. They'd given up before too long and had gone into their huddle, and she wondered what exactly they were up to. One thing was clear, though—they had a plan. Some way to help end this thing.

_So what can _I _do?_

There really was only one thing she could do. Keep Professor Julius's attention off the other side of the field. But how?

Her eyes darted around for something—anything—that could help her distract her mentor. There was nothing in this chamber, however, except the duelists and the monsters, and certainly nothing within her reach in the confines of what she was coming to think of as her "glass box."

Her eyes eventually were drawn back to the three-headed dragon. It wasn't as regal or magnificent as the singular White Dragon—something about the three dragons combined seemed a little off to her. But she felt drawn to it anyway. It was bowed down, its wings folded and its heads lowered, which she was pretty sure meant it was in "defense mode" and couldn't attack, but then Seto's turn was over and he was the only one who could get it to attack anyway.

Or was he?

That strange malfunction when Seto had been teaching her the game that first night—what had Mokuba said_? It almost looked like Blue-Eyes just didn't want to attack you._ What if it were true? What if she was connected to this Kisara and to the White Dragon? But hadn't Kisara given away her power to save Seto? Isn't that why he controlled the White Dragon today? 

Still, the White Dragon had appeared to refuse his order to attack her. Could there still be some sort of connection, some residual link between them?

Sara focused on the three-headed dragon. Get up. Get up and attack!

* * *

Joey's hand was shaking slightly as he drew. He could feel the weight of all of their fates on his shoulders—his sister, Mai, Yugi, Tristan, Téa, Mokuba, Sara, and even Kaiba. _I can't lose. One turn, that's all that's left. I gotta take him down in one turn._

He looked at the card he drew: Monster Reborn. He could revive Slifer with that card, and if he were the one to revive it, then he'd also be the one to control it. He could call an attack…. Joey shook his head. The most he'd have in his hand would be three cards, and to do what he needed to do, two or even one, which meant Slifer's attack would be too low to be of much use. And he had to admit he was leery of even trying. Sure, he'd been one of the three chosen duelists, along with Yugi and Kaiba, to wield one of the Legendary Dragons, but this was an Egyptian _god_. Even Yugi had reservations about playing the god cards ever since Atem's… leaving them. And if Yugi doubted _he_ could handle the gods…. No, it was better to stick to the original plan.

The other cards in his hand were pretty good. Jinzo, Gilford the Lightning, and Megamorph. Gilford in particular, coupled with Megamorph and Graceful Dice, could be all that he needed to win this thing. He'd have to sacrifice three monsters, but Mai wouldn't need her Harpies anymore and would gladly surrender them to the cause. "All right, time to do some damage Joey Wheeler style. Mai, if you'll be so kind as to loan me your Harpies, I sacrifice them to summon Gilford the Lightning! And when Gilford is summoned by sacrificing three monsters, he destroys all monsters on your side of the field, Professor, so say good-bye to _my_ Dragon Dwelling in the Cave!"

Julius barely flinched as his last monster disappeared.

Joey took a breath. "Next I'll use Monster Reborn to bring back Red-Eyes Black Dragon. Then I'll equip Gilford the Lightning with Megamorph. As long as my Life Points are lower than yours, it doubles the attack strength of the monster it's equipped to. That gives Gilford 5600 attack points."

"You are poor at arithmetic, aren't you?" Julius's lips curled into a sneer. "Even with your Red-Eyes Black Dragon, that still leaves you 100 points short of defeating me."

Joey grinned. "And that's where my Graceful Dice comes in." He waved his hand, causing the little angel-like creature to appear on the field. It rolled its giant blue die, which landed on five, and Joey's smile widened. "Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but Gilford's 5600, plus Red-Eyes' 2400, plus 500 extra attack points _each_ brings us to _9000_. That's 900 points more than I need to take you down!"

Mai let out an enthusiastic cheer. "You did it! That's showing 'em, kiddo!"

He was a little surprised his sister or Tristan or Téa didn't also cheer. He almost looked over his shoulder to see why not, but then he remembered what Mai had told them. _Looks like whatever they're planning won't be necessary after all. _"Gilford and Red-Eyes, attack his Life Points and let's bring this sucker on home!"

"Your victory celebration is a bit premature, I'm afraid." One of those annoying smug grins, the kind that made Joey want to smash his fist into it, spread across Julius's face. "You see, as soon as you tributed a monster to summon Gilford, you armed my trap, and by calling for Gilford to attack, you've activated it: Blast Held by Tribute, a bomb that will not only destroy all of your monsters in attack position, but will do 1000 points of direct damage to your Life Points as well. And with only 750 Life Points, you don't have 1000 to spare."

"He does now!" Mai raised her arm, activating an instant magic card, Emergency Provisions. "For every trap or spell card I send from the field to the graveyard, I can increase one of my teammates' Life Points by 1000. Good-bye Dramatic Rescue, hello 1000 Life Points for Joey."

Joey's Life Points rose to 1750 just as Gilford exploded in a huge fireball, taking Red-Eyes with him. Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon and Obelisk were shielded from the blast by virtue of being in defense position, but Joey took a 1000-point hit and was left with no monsters he could use for attack.

"And that, I believe, ends your battle phase." Helpoemer's arm rose from Julius's graveyard and took Joey's remaining card: Jinzo. "Now, seeing as you have no cards left on the field and nothing in your hand, I believe this duel is over."

Joey swallowed and looked at Mai. _We lost. I couldn't do it, and we lost._

* * *

When Téa felt Marik's presence in her mind a second time, she immediately released control to him in an effort to lock him in and make him stay. _We need your help, Marik. Don't go._

"I'm here," he said out loud using her voice. "What's going on?"

"Marik?" Tristan asked.

"Yes, yes. Now what do you need?" Marik folded Téa's arms, impatient.

Tristan gave a short nod. "We need to know how to summon someone in Egyptian."

"Summon some_one_ in Egyptian? What the hell are you talking about?"

_Yugi summoned Atem in the Shadow Realm, Marik, _Téa explained through their silent connection._ He said he did it by accident, calling out for him in Egyptian. "Hark, come to me," or something like that. We need to know what he said because we need Atem. Yugi's unconscious, and if he can't take his next turn, we forfeit the duel._

"Yugi summoned… _what_?"

"Uh… you talking to me?" Tristan scratched the back of his head.

"I think he's talking to Téa," Serenity said.

_Yugi summoned Atem. Ramesses sent him to the Shadow Realm, right? So when Yugi was in a Dark Game and needed him, he came._

Téa felt Marik's surprise as he mulled this over. "He really summoned Atem? We'd never considered this. There are different levels to the Shadow Realm. Dark Games are one level, for example, and Penalty Games are another. I've never heard of someone being summoned from a deeper level into a Dark Game."

"But it's possible, isn't it?" Serenity asked. "I mean, we all summoned our monsters in that shadow war after Yugi and Kaiba defeated Evan Haines on the island. And I summoned Mystical Elf when there wasn't even a Shadow Game. I needed a way to heal Téa from whatever Reshef had done to her, and she sorta just _came_."

"It does make sense. He is bonded to Yugi, and to a lesser extent, Yugi's closest friends."

Téa felt her patience waning. _Okay, this all very interesting and everything, but we need Atem _now_ and we don't have all day, so just tell me how to summon someone in Egyptian!_

_Summon like call him to you, or summon like a monster in Duel Monsters?_

_I don't know! Yugi said he used an Egyptian summoning. _Eew_-something. "Hark, come to me."_

_Hark…? Wait. _Iw sedjem eny. Iw iash i! Iw ii eny? _That's an ancient summoning incantation. It means "Hearken to me, I call! Come to me!"_

_That's it! That's what he said! Teach us how to say it so we can call for Atem._

_"Us?" Not just you?_

_No. Me, Tristan, and Joey._

_Then it needs to be "Hearken to _uswe_ call, come to _us._" _Iw sedjem enen. Iw iash en! Iw ii enen!

Still in control of Téa's body, he turned to Tristan. "This is what you need to say: 'Atem! _Iw sedjem enen. Iw iash en! Iw ii enen!_'"

"Eew…" Tristan imitated slowly.

"_Iw sedjem enen. Iw iash en! Iw ii enen!_" Marik broke down the syllables. "Eew… sed… jem… en… en…."

Tristan followed after him while Téa concentrated on how the words felt in her mouth as Marik said them, because she was pretty sure it had to be her and not him for this to work.

"_Iw… sedjem… enen. Iw… iash… en! Iw… ii… enen!_ That right?"

"It better be," Mokuba said, "because it looks like Joey's turn is over. It's now or never."

_I'm gonna need control back, Marik, but don't go far. Help me say it right._

_Fine, but make this quick. I want to get back to Ryou and Ishizu. We were in the middle of our own Dark Game, you might recall._

_Okay, let's do this then._

Marik released control, and Téa felt herself come fully into her own body. She looked at Tristan. "It's me again. Ready?"

"As I'll ever be."

On impulse, she took his hand and the two of them turned to face the field. Gripping each other's hands as if someone might try to rip them apart at any moment, they both called out together: "ATEM! _Iw sedjem enen. Iw iash en! Iw ii enen!_"

* * *

Joey stared at Mai. _It can't be over, there has to be a way to keep going…._

"Wheeler's turn may be over, but this duel isn't," Kaiba said. Joey and Mai both turned to look at him, wondering if he had some sort of strategy, or if he was just stalling. "No one's Life Points have reached zero, and I don't remember any time limit set on the game."

"If your next player cannot draw, you lose the duel, and seeing as your next player is unconscious…."

"You didn't stipulate a time limit. Standard practice is to give duelists five minutes to take their turn."

"Five minutes?" Julius barked out an incredulous laugh. "That boy took the equivalent of a 3500-point hit after having already received previous damage. He's not going to wake up in five minutes! He'd be lucky to wake up in five hours!"

"Nevertheless, the duel isn't over until—"

Kaiba was cut off by a shout from beyond the barrier behind them. Joey whirled around. "What the—?"

Tristan and Téa were standing holding hands, with their other hands up as if pressed against the invisible divider. They were shouting something over and over again. Joey cocked his head trying to make out what they were saying. "Atem! _Iw sedjem enen. Iw iash en! Iw ii enen!_"

Mai wrinkled her nose. "What are they doing? I can't understand what they're saying. Adam something?"

Joey's eyes widened. "Not Adam. _Atem_. They're calling the Pharaoh! That's his _name_." He started walking towards them.

"They're… what?"

Behind him, Julius roared in outrage. "What do you think you're doing?"

"What's it to you?" Kaiba shouted back. "We have five minutes before Yugi has to take the field. They can sing Broadway show tunes if they want!"

Téa opened her eyes. "Joey, we need your help! We're on the wrong side of the barrier!"

Joey's walk had already turned into a jog and now it became a sprint. He slid onto his knees beside Yugi, where Tristan and Téa were holding hands on the other side of the force field. "What do I do?"

Téa and Tristan both knelt down to be at his level. "We're calling for Atem in Egyptian. Long story; we'll explain later. Just say what we're saying." Téa repeated the phrase and he copied her, then he reached over and took Yugi's hand in his and put his other hand up to the barrier to meet Tristan's and Téa's.

"Atem! _Iw sedjem enen. Iw iash en! Iw ii enen!_" the three of them chanted together. Joey squeezed Yugi's hand. "Atem! _Iw sedjem enen. Iw iash en! Iw ii enen!_"

Julius was still raging behind them. "This is ridiculous! We are in a duel! We are—"

Joey tuned him out. "Atem! _Iw sedjem enen. Iw iash en! Iw ii enen! Iw sedjem—_" He was cut short when he heard someone—Serenity maybe—gasp and then his heart almost stopped in his chest as a deep voice rang out behind him.

"I am here."


	13. Return

**13. Return**

Bakura took a moment to adjust to being back in control of his own body, flexing his fingers and feeling them respond to his will. In the days when the Spirit of the Ring had possessed him, he would wake up from long blackouts in strange locations, often bleeding or with someone else's blood on him, never quite knowing exactly what had happened during the time he'd served as little more than an empty shell for the Spirits machinations. Taking back control from Marik was completely different, and it was a little hard getting used to.

Ishizu was clearly losing her patience, however. "Stop stalling, Brother, and make your move."

Bakura smirked at her in a way that felt at once both unnatural and completely instinctive. He was trying to imitate Marik, but it wasn't Marik's grin that slipped so easily onto his face. He drew Twin Swords of Flashing Light Tryce. Interesting. That would make it possible to accomplish what he hoped to all in one turn, instead of dividing his attack plan across two turns and running the risk of Ishizu attacking him during her turn. "I have no reason to stall. On the contrary, I have everything I need."

Ishizu frowned. "Your voice sounds different."

"Does it?" He pulled Diabound out of his hand and held it for a moment. _It's time._ "I sacrifice Jam Defender to play Diabound Colonel, and I equip him with Twin Swords of Flashing Light Tryce, sending Lord of Poison from my hand to the graveyard to do so."

"What good does that equip card do you? As long as Spiria is on the field, you can't attack any monsters but her, so giving your monster a second attack per turn is wasted. Not only that, you lose 500 attack points. A monster with only 1300 attack points is useless against all of my monsters."

"Not quite. Spiria's 2500 defense points are quite formidable, but with only 800 attack points, she's not exactly aggressive."

"What difference does that make if she's in defense mode?"

"None. But if I were to, say, play Negate Defense and force her into attack mode…." Bakura smirked again, then played the card in question, and Spiria went from defense to attack mode. "Now 1300 attack points isn't quite as worthless, wouldn't you agree?"

"Your second attack is still useless. 1300 points is not enough to attack either Zolga or Reshef the Dark Being."

"I'm getting to that. I still have one last card in my hand to play. With Left Arm Offering, I send my entire hand to the graveyard—which at the moment consists of only one card—and then I can add any spell card from my deck to my hand. I choose Spirit Illusion." He discarded his last card, then found his Spirit Illusion in the deck he'd created combining his cards with Marik's. He placed it in a spell card slot on his Duel Disk. "This creates a doppelganger of one of my monsters." A second Diabound appeared on the field, an exact duplicate of the original. "My doppelganger cannot attack, at least not the way a real monster does, but what he can do is reduce one of your monster's attack points by an amount equal to the doppelganger's strength. As an exact duplicate of Diabound only without the Twin Swords of Flashing Light Tryce, he has 1800 attack points. Doppelganger, see what you can do with Reshef the Dark Being, won't you?"

The copy flew at Reshef, turning into shadows and enveloping the huge, bronze-armored monster, bringing its attack down to 700.

_And now for the main event._ "Diabound, attack Reshef the Dark Being!"

Diabound went in for the kill, destroying Reshef and taking Ishizu down to 1000 Life Points. She grunted at the 600-point hit, then straightened. "Your turn is over, and you have only a weak monster to protect you against Zolga."

"I also have Spirit Shield."

"It won't be enough to save you."

A smile curled onto Bakura's lips. "But I've already accomplished all that is necessary."

Ishizu frowned, cocking her head, then her eyes widened. "Diabound! That isn't Marik's monster—it belongs to the Thief King!"

"Very good. Unfortunately, I'm afraid it's too little too late to save your 'master.'"

* * *

Téa's eyes flew open as soon as she heard his voice. Even though they'd called for him, even though this was exactly what they had intended, the reality of it—of _him_—standing there between the "bench" and the field threatened to overwhelm her. His back was to them, but his long flowing cape, Egyptian tunic and, of course, the distinctive spiked black and magenta hair were exactly as she'd last seen him, walking into the intense bright light of the Spirit World. Then, she'd tried to run after him. Now she rocked back on her heels, too full of conflicting emotions to do anything else.

In the back of her mind, she felt Marik's surprise. _I'll be damned, it worked! _When she couldn't form a coherent thought to reply, he just added, _Well, then, I'll just leave the rest to the Pharaoh. I need to get back to Ryou._

Téa just gave a blank nod, and his presence was gone.

A silence had fallen over the entire room as everyone stared at Atem. Kaiba looked like he wanted to rub his eyes to make sure he wasn't seeing things, and Mai had her hand up as if she had stopped herself from reaching out to touch him to see if he were real.

Professor Julius, however, did not look quite so awed. He was absolutely enraged. "Who are you?"

Atem laughed. "Who am I? I should ask that of _you_, but seeing as I actually have a brain, I think I can work it out on my own. You're the one who calls himself Ramesses, correct?"

Téa had to close her eyes at the sound of his voice. It was deeper than she remembered, and had a haughty, arrogant edge that Yugi, even in his most Pharaoh-like moments, couldn't match.

"Who I am is none of your concern."

"H-his real name is Professor Julius," Joey said. It came out more like a croak. He coughed and tried again. "He's an archaeologist, worked with Professor Hawkins and Yugi. Thinks he's Ramesses the Great or something."

Atem snorted and cocked his head. "Really. You don't seem that great to me, Professor."

"What you think is rather irrelevant. This is _my_ Shadow Game, and I'm afraid my opponents worked out how to summon a guardian monster a little too late to save themselves."

Téa opened her eyes as Atem laughed again. "Do I look like a Duel Monster to you?"

Julius frowned. "Then who are you?"

Atem crossed his arms, and even with his back turned to her, Téa could almost see the smirk on his face. "You send me to the Shadow Realm, and yet you don't know who I am?"

Julius stared at Atem, then his eyes widened. He looked from Atem to where Yugi lay unconscious, then back to Atem again. "It can't be…."

"Of course it can. Do you think for one moment that you could send me to the Shadow Realm and then bring my friends—my _partner_—here for a Dark Game, and that I wouldn't come to them?"

Julius shook his head, an almost feral sneer forming on his lips. "So the Nameless Pharaoh has returned."

"HE HAS A NAME!" The words had popped out without Téa even thinking, and she put her hand over her mouth.

Atem didn't turn around, but something in his stance softened, and she thought she heard a sigh escape him. Tristan, still holding her other hand from when they were summoning him, squeezed it.

"You don't belong here," Julius said.

The softness in Atem was gone in an instant. "You are the one who brought me."

"I meant in this Shadow Game! You are not a part of this!"

"I am bonded to my partner and to my friends. They called on my Name, and they summoned me to them. Of course I am a part of this."

"And you came to what purpose? To escort them back into the depths of the Shadow Realm with you? The duel is _over_. They've lost."

Atem glanced around. Téa caught sight of his profile and would have gasped if she didn't still have her hand over her mouth. He looked so _young_, much younger than she remembered. In her mind, he was always older, more experienced, the goal toward which Yugi was forever striving. But it had been three years since Atem had gone into the afterworld and, of course, he wouldn't have aged, while all of them had. But somehow she'd expected him to still look older than Yugi, never younger.

He turned back to Julius. "I don't see anyone's Life Points at zero, and everyone seems to have plenty of cards left in their decks. It would appear to me that this duel is still very much in progress."

"Perhaps you didn't notice your vessel." Julius jutted his chin out in Yugi's direction. "He lies unconscious, unable to take his next turn."

Joey grunted. "Thanks to you and your cheating."

Atem glanced upwards at Ultimate Obedient Fiend. "Yes, I know," he said darkly. His gaze returned to Julius. "I will finish the duel in his place."

Julius laughed. "You can't! There are no substitutions, particularly not in a Shadow Game!"

"Oh, I think you will find that I most assuredly can. The Shadow Realm recognizes us as the same. Just ask Maximillion Pegasus."

"This duel is OVER!" His voice rang out, echoing across the shadowy chamber.

"We still have a good two minutes left before you can call it forfeit," Kaiba said.

Atem turned, acknowledging Kaiba with a nod. His gaze then fell on Yugi, and he walked toward them, all arrogance and condescension melting off his face as he stared at his unconscious partner. Joey moved aside as he approached, and Atem knelt down beside Yugi, reaching out to stroke his face with a gentle touch. "_Aibou_."

In that instant, it hit Téa rather hard exactly how much she had oversimplified their relationship. For just a moment, for Atem, there was only him and Yugi, and however much she tried to insinuate herself into that, she would never be able to do so. She had tried to blend them in a way that made it easy for her to process and to accept, so things could be how _she_ wanted them to be, but the reality of seeing _him_ again, separate from Yugi, and seeing how large Yugi loomed in his eyes was almost too much for her to take in. She pulled her hand away from Tristan and reached for the barrier, pressing her hands against the place closest to where Yugi lay, as if sheer will could propel her through and she could gather Yugi into her arms, although whether her sudden possessiveness was to claim him _from_ Atem or _over_ him, she wasn't sure.

He looked up, then, his eyes meeting hers for the first time since his arrival. His expression was inscrutable, and she choked back a sob before he gave her a small but uncomfortable smile. "Thank you."

She couldn't speak, so she nodded, and he looked from her to Tristan to Joey. "Thank you all."

No one said anything; they couldn't even begin to speak. Atem turned his attention back to Yugi and carefully slipped the Duel Disk off his arm and onto his own, then picked up the five cards that had been Yugi's hand. He rose quickly, returning once more to his haughty stance as he walked toward the field. Joey also stood up, following him as far as his own spot in the "bench" area next to Mai, who immediately sidled up to him and took his hand in hers.

When Atem arrived on the field, he stopped and looked at Julius once again. "See? In the shadows, my partner and I are one and the same. In _everything_, we are one and the same." He looked at his hand then, and glanced around the field, processing the exact status of the duel in less time than it would have taken Téa to perform a single _petit allegro_. He shook his head. "How disappointing. I was hoping for a challenge, what with you being 'the Great Ramesses' and all that, but I see that my friends and my partner have already done all the work. There's nothing left for me to do but play the cards that are already in my hand and on the field."

Julius looked like he wanted to fly across the field and throttle Atem with his bare hands. "You think you can come here, into my Dark Game, and hold court over me? You who sealed away the Millennium Items not once but twice, preventing me from accessing the power I was destined for? You don't belong here, Nameless Pharaoh! You belong in hell, and I fully intend to send you back there to stay!"

Téa was on her feet as soon as she saw Ultimate Obedient Fiend move, and Joey broke away from Mai to make another lunge at the field, but Atem was quicker. "Mahad! _Iw sedjem eny. Iw iash nisu! Iw ii eny!_"

A shimmering mist of light swirled around them at the exact same moment as Ultimate Obedient Fiend sent blasts of lighting from his claws. A second flash of white lightning flared, accompanied by a piercing shriek that sounded familiar but which Téa couldn't quite place. The light was blinding, and she had to cover her eyes with her arm against the sudden glare.

When the light dimmed a moment later, there was so much smoke and haze Téa couldn't tell what had happened. She heard Joey call out, "PHARAOH!" and she had to press her hands to her chest to stop from shaking. _Please, not again, please let him be all right…_

Gradually, she could make out the silhouette of a figure standing in the haze.

She caught her breath. _Standing_.

It was Atem, definitely Atem, standing and seemingly unscathed. In front of him, staff held ready, was Dark Magician, also looking completely unharmed.

Téa frowned. Dark Magician only had 2500 attack points. Ultimate Obedient Fiend had 3500. And where _was_ Ultimate Obedient Fiend?

That was when she saw what had blocked the attack and destroyed Ultimate Obedient Fiend, and it wasn't Dark Magician. Hovering above Yugi in full attack mode was Kaiba's Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon.


	14. Interference

**14. Interference**

Even though he'd known as soon as he'd heard Blue-Eyes' roar, Kaiba was still having a hard time processing what he was seeing. Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon had somehow shifted herself into attack mode and destroyed Ultimate Obedient Fiend.

Julius was no less stunned. "Th-that's not possible! A monster from the field cannot defend against my guardian monster!"

The three-headed dragon folded her wings and settled back into defense position next to Obelisk, and Kaiba wrenched his eyes off her and looked at Yugi—no, not Yugi; the other Yugi—the Pharaoh—Atem—in time to see him give Kaiba a brief nod. "Thank you, Kaiba."

Kaiba shook his head. "I didn't. I—" He closed his jaw with a snap and looked out across the field. Sara was slumped with both of her hands and her forehead against the barrier as if it were the only thing keeping her on her feet. Kaiba's eyes widened in alarm. "Sara!"

She looked up, keeping her hands out to support her weight. "It worked." She sounded surprised but drained. "I didn't really think it would, but it did."

Julius whipped his head around to glare at her. "_You_. You contemptible little _cow_! How _dare_ you interfere! It was bad enough that you very nearly ruined everything by finding the desecrated tombs before sunrise, giving me precious little time to cover the fact that I was in Luxor when I should have been in Cairo. But at least then you remembered your place and alerted _me_ first. You are _my_ student, do you understand me? Everything you know or think you know is _because of me_. For this betrayal, I will _destroy_ you!"

Kaiba exploded. "You listen to me, you insignificant waste of air. If you threaten her again, if you say one word to her or so much as glance in her general direction, I will _annihilate_ you. And I'm not talking about a mere game, dark or otherwise… _Monarch_."

"You think you can threaten me, Seto Kaiba? You forget how my protégé came to be here! She is conscious and in her own mind merely because _I _granted it. But she is still under Reshef's sway. One word from me, one small hand motion, and she—"

He stopped short, suddenly finding himself at the receiving end of Dark Magician's staff.

"I would carefully consider my next words if I were you," Yugi—no, _Atem_—said, his voice so low and threatening it practically rumbled out of him.

Julius's eyes were ice as he glared from Dark Magician to Atem to Kaiba, whose own gaze did not waver. At length, he took a step backwards. Dark Magician lowed his staff—but only slightly—and the Pharaoh let out a slow breath. He turned to face Sara. "You are the girl whose _Ka_ became Blue-Eyes White Dragon." It wasn't a question.

Sara looked a little alarmed to be directly addressed by this man with Yugi's hair, dressed in Egyptian raiment, who had been summoned out of the air. She looked to Kaiba for… support? Confirmation? Assent? He wasn't sure what he could give her, so he just gazed back at her. She would have to find her own answers.

She closed her eyes and sighed. "I don't know. I just—she speaks to me." She nodded at Blue-Eyes and Kaiba closed his eyes, pressing his lips together.

He didn't pursue it further. "Thank you."

Kaiba opened his eyes and directed his attention to Julius. "Now if we're done with the childish off-field tantrums, Professor, can we get on with this? I've got better things to do with my time."

The Pharaoh looked over his shoulder, shaking his head with an amused smirk on his face. "You haven't changed, have you, Kaiba?"

Kaiba rolled his eyes. "Are you gonna duel, or what? Because if you can't finish this thing, my turn is next."

"Oh, I can finish it." He turned back to Julius. "I believe it's my move."

* * *

Téa kept her hand against the barrier, as close to touching Yugi as she could, while she watched Atem duel. It was surreal how his mere presence on the dueling field both erased the past three years as if he had never left them, and validated that in a sense he never really had. With the exception of the Egyptian clothing and the dark skin, everything about him was at once so very _Yugi_ and so completely _not_ Yugi. Trying to gasp where they fit and where they diverged was like trying to differentiate between the oxygen and nitrogen molecules in the air. Only the solid feel of the divider, which felt like warm glass against her hand, and knowing that Yugi—her Yugi—lay just beyond kept her grounded.

Atem drew, but before he could so much as add the card to his hand, Julius activated a trap card. "I'll use my Graverobber to take a card from one of your graveyards—the whelp's, to be specific." The little gnome-like creature with a pick and a shovel gave a shrill giggle as he jumped into Joey's graveyard and returned a moment later with a magic card. Julius addressed Joey. "Remember your Hyper Refresh card? It's an instant magic card, which means I can activate it at any time, so long as I have no monsters on the field and the total attack of the monsters on my opponent's side of the field is higher than my Life Points. I have 8100 Life Points, and the combined attack of Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon and Obelisk the Tormentor is 8500. This means I get to double my Life Points, giving me a total of 16,200 Life Points.

Téa blinked, trying to remember if she'd ever seen a duel where a player had that many Life Points.

Atem looked almost bored. "Do you think that's a problem for the Egyptian gods?"

"God, singular," Julius corrected. "You have one god on the field, with only 4000 attack points. I know you have Ra in your hand, but you don't have enough monsters to tribute for him."

"Don't I?" Atem pulled a card out of his hand. "If you recall, Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon is not really a single monster, but a fusion of three monsters. So all it would take to have three very powerful monsters on the field is one card." He turned the card he was holding around to face Julius. "De-Fusion."

Julius's jaw clenched as Atem slipped the card into his Duel Disk—_Yugi's_ Duel Disk—and Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon separated into three Blue-Eyes White Dragons. Each with 3000 attack points. And Ra's attack points were based on the attack of each of the monsters tributed to summon it.

"Hear that?" Joey asked, cupping his hand to his ear. "That's the fat lady singing for ya, Julie buddy!"

Atem pulled another card out of his hand, holding it out before him. "And now I sacrifice these three Blue-Eyes White Dragons…."

The three dragons disappeared, and a yellow glow surrounded Atem. Téa closed her eyes, not wanting to remember the last time she'd seen the Winged Dragon of Ra summoned—in the Ceremonial Battle that sent him to the afterlife. It didn't help her nerves any that Yugi had defeated all three gods in that duel….

Atem began chanting in Egyptian, and the glow got brighter until Téa could even see it through her closed eyelids, like the sun itself had descended into the chamber. A roar like rushing wind drowned out Atem's chanting, and when the light dimmed enough so that she could open her eyes, Téa could see a huge sphere hovering in the air above Atem as he raised the card in his hand above his head. "I summon the Winged Dragon of Ra, god of Egypt!" The sphere cracked open, with golden rays of light bursting out from within. It unfolded, revealing a huge yellow dragon with an astounding 9000 attack points. Still not enough, however, even when combined with Obelisk's 4000 attack points. But she knew Ra had many special abilities, and Atem activated one of them.

"And now I sacrifice 3499 of my own Life Points—all but one—to increase Ra's attack strength by the same amount. That gives Ra an attack of 12,499. Combined with Obelisk's 4000 attack points, that's almost 300 more than we need. You have no monsters on the field, no traps left, only one card in your hand. You're through, 'great' Ramesses!"

"I am never through! Dark Dust Spirit! _Iw sedjem eny. Iw iash i! Iw ii eny!_"

A ghoulish monster with a red body covered in purple spikes burst onto the field high above the duel. It had a red, skull-like face, glowing yellow eyes, long white hair, and was radiating some kind of energy. Kaiba called out a warning. "That's Dark Dust Spirit! It destroys every monster on the field when it's summoned!"

Atem's response was immediate. "Dark Magician, use your Dark Magic Attack to block Dark Dust Spirit's effect! Mana! _Iw sedjem eny. Iw iash nisu! Iw ii eny!_"

Dark Magician pointed his staff at Dark Dust Spirit, but instead of the usual single blast like a green laser beam, he created a glowing green shield. Dark Magician Girl materialized out of the air beside him and immediately pointed her own staff, bolstering the shield against the energy radiating out from Dark Dust Spirit.

Mai gave an indignant cry. "He can't use side monsters to destroy monsters on the _field_!"

"And we weren't supposed to be able to use field monsters to defend attacks from the side monsters," Kaiba replied.

Téa shook her head, trying to follow what was going on since nothing any of them were doing fit the rules of any duel she'd seen and, as Kaiba pointed out, even seemed outside the rules that had been in place for most of this duel.

Atem looked like he was feeling the strain of his two guardians' efforts. "Joey! Mai! Kaiba! I need your help! The key to summoning your monsters is the Egyptian incantation. Call your monsters!"

Joey looked over his shoulder at Téa. "The same thing we said to call Atem?"

She shook her head. "No, that was for all of us to call him together." She tried to remember what Marik had told her.

"How Atem did it, then?"

Sara called out to them from across the field. "No, not unless you're the king. It's '_Iw sedjem eny. Iw iash i! Iw ii eny!_'"

Kaiba was the first to get it, with Joey and Mai close behind. "Blue-Eyes White Dragon! _Iw sedjem eny. Iw iash i! Iw ii eny!_"

"Red-Eyes Black Dragon! _Iw sedjem eny. Iw iash i! Iw ii eny!_"

"Harpie Lady! _Iw sedjem eny. Iw iash i! Iw ii eny!_"

The three monsters appeared, hurling themselves into the fray and going after Dark Dust Spirit directly while the two Magicians held off his effect with their staffs. Before any of the monsters could actually attack, however, Dark Dust Spirit disappeared. He didn't disintegrate like he'd been destroyed—he just winked out of existence like a hologram when the Duel Disk generating it was turned off. At that exact moment, the force field separating Téa and the other spectators from the field evaporated under her hand, sending her toppling forward into the "bench" area. When she recovered from her surprise, she scrambled forward, gathering Yugi into her arms and pulling his head onto her lap. "Yugi!"

"Dude, the barrier's down!" Tristan sounded as surprised as Téa was.

Joey, still focused on Dark Dust Spirit, didn't seem to hear him. "Where'd he go?"

"He took the barrier down to make his escape," Atem said. "Ramesses is gone as well."

Kaiba roared in fury. "WHAT? How can he be gone? We were in the middle of a _duel_."

"Not just a duel—we were in the middle of a _Shadow Game_," Joey said, "and he was about to lose. How the hell does someone walk out of a Shadow Game? I didn't think that was possible!"

Atem shook his head. "It's not. He must have used Dark Dust Spirit to remove him from the field and take him deeper into the Shadow Realm. Its other special ability is that it returns to its owner's hand at the end of the turn that it's summoned. Ramesses knew he couldn't win, so he used it as a diversion and to help him escape. But he's still in the Shadow Realm. He can't have left, not directly." He looked up at Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl. "Mahad, Mana, go find him and report back to me."

They both bowed and disappeared. As soon as they were gone, Atem collapsed.


	15. Bonded

**15. Bonded**

"Yugi!" Joey darted onto the field, catching his friend under the arm before his legs gave way completely. It was only then that he realized what he'd said. "Uh… I mean, Atem. Sorry."

"No, don't be sorry." Atem looked up at him, his face too drawn and weak for someone who only moments before had summoned a god and had been ordering people around like he was one himself. His voice was unusually subdued as well. "To be known to you… by that name… it's an honor."

Joey blinked, then nodded as he repositioned himself to better support Atem's weight.

The Pharaoh leaned into him with a grateful sigh. "I need to go to him."

Joey nodded again and turned them both toward the place where Yugi lay. Joey saw that the barrier separating the duelists from their friends was indeed down—Téa had already pulled Yugi onto her lap and was cradling him in her arms, Tristan and Serenity at her side, and Mokuba had flung himself at Kaiba. Barriers or not, the entire chamber was still filled with the dark purple fog, however, indicating that their Shadow Game was not yet finished. Ra, Blue-Eyes, Red-Eyes and Harpie Lady were suspended on the field, waiting for further instructions. "What about our monsters?" Joey asked Atem.

He looked up. "Oh yes. We should recall them for now."

It took only a nod from him, and Ra disappeared, turning into a golden streak of light that flew back into Atem's Duel Disk. Joey, Kaiba, and Mai followed suit, recalling their monsters so that only the humans were left. Well, humans and one spirit.

From the other side of the field, Sara approached Kaiba and Mokuba with some hesitation, as if afraid to intrude on the moment between the two brothers. But Kaiba reached out to her, touching her shoulder, and with a gentleness to his voice usually reserved only for Mokuba, he asked her, "Are you all right?"

"I… I think so, yes."

His face softened—not much, but just enough to give Joey the impression of relief.

"Atem… are you okay?"

Joey's attention snapped back to what he was doing, and he realized he and Atem had made it back to where the others were grouped around Yugi. Téa eyes, round and anxious, were fixed on Atem as Joey helped lower him to his knees at Yugi's side across from her.

"Yeah, dude what happened out there?" Tristan asked. "One second you're kicking butt and taking names, and the next you're on the ground."

Serenity answered for him. "It's the Shadow Realm. He's been here too long." She had that odd edge in her voice that she got whenever she was feeling whatever freaky thing she felt with the Shadow Realm, making Joey clench his jaw. Atem had probably held it together while they were dueling by sheer force of will, but it was clear now just how much of a toll nearly two weeks in the Shadow Realm—not to mention summoning an Egyptian god in a Dark Game—had taken.

Atem took Yugi's hand in his. "Never mind me. How is he?"

"I don't know." Serenity looked at him, a little uncertain, and spoke with some reticence. "But I… I can help him." She appeared to be a little flustered by Atem, and it hit Joey that she'd never seen him in his own body, separate from Yugi. He remembered how it had felt in the Memory World and then later when Yugi had been literally split into two before the Ceremonial Battle. Merely _knowing_ about Atem's existence hadn't been enough to prepare him for the shock of actually _seeing_ him.

Come to think of it, Mai had never seen him before, either, and Joey looked around, suddenly wondering where she was. He found her, standing nearby but apart from their group, her arms crossed the way she would when she was uncomfortable but wanted everyone to think she was just being aloof. Joey beckoned her over with a jerk of his head, and she responded by stepping closer to him, but she didn't uncross her arms or join them on the floor.

Serenity, meanwhile, was still talking to Atem. "I just need… I need to know what you said. The Egyptian words to summon your monsters."

He looked at her, confused for a moment, then his eyebrows went up in sudden understanding. "That's right. You're connected to Mystical Elf, the healer."

Joey gave a vigorous shake of his head. "Oh, no, nothin' doin,' Serenity. You remember what happened the last time you tried to summon Mystical Elf."

Tristan leaned forward. "That was before we knew that the key was to do it in Egyptian."

Joey gaped at his so-called friend. "So it's okay with you if she gets blasted across the room and her head bashed into the wall?"

"Don't be an idiot! Of course I don't want to see that happen, but I didn't see you get your head bashed into a wall when you summoned Red-Eyes. Give your sister a little credit, will you? She's not the little girl who needed your protection anymore!"

Joey leaned over to shake his fist under Tristan's nose. "This is _my_ sister we're talking about, so just keep your big fat mouth shut, or I'll shut it for you!"

"Oh yeah, like you even could."

Joey flew to his feet. "You wanna see if I can?"

Tristan jumped up as well. "Bring it on, tough guy!"

"SHUT UP, BOTH OF YOU!"

Their mouths both snapped closed at Téa's reprimand. She looked ready to box both of them on the ears, but she turned to Serenity instead, anger draining away in an instant. "Please, Serenity. Help him. Whatever you can do."

Joey looked down at Yugi, still unconscious in Téa's arms, and shame washed over him. _Yuge_. "Yeah. Yeah, you're right. Sorry, Téa." He sat back down, Tristan following suit with his own mumbled apology. Joey looked at his sister. "I just… you… you're…" He slumped his shoulders in defeat. "Just be careful, okay?"

She nodded, then asked Atem, "How do I summon her?"

He taught her the incantation, and when she could imitate it fairly accurately, she closed her eyes, one hand on Yugi's chest and the other on her Mystical Elf pendant. "Mystical Elf! _Iw sedjem eny. Iw iash i! Iw ii eny!_"

Joey braced himself, but as Tristan had predicted, there was no blast or anything but the air shimmering around them, glowing green, blue, and white. Mystical Elf appeared, hovering above them, her white sphere of light in her hands. She began to chant, and the sphere started glowing as she let go of it and let it float over Yugi, bathing him in light. After a moment, the glow dimmed and the sphere returned to its mistress's hands. Yugi's eyes flickered open and locked onto the faces hovering above him. "Téa? Joey? What happened?"

"Yugi!" Téa's pulled him into a tight embrace.

Atem, almost melting in relief, let go of Yugi's hand. He looked at Serenity. "Thank you."

When Téa finally relaxed her grip on him, Yugi struggled to sit up, but he still looked a little woozy so she pushed him back down into her lap, keeping her arms wrapped firmly across his chest. "You rest a minute."

He blinked, trying to focus. "What happened? Did we—" He stopped short, pulling out of Téa's grip and sitting up straight again as he caught sight of Atem. "Other Me!"

"_Aibou_, don't sit up. You took a lot of damage."

"But what… what happened? Why are you here? Where _are_ we?"

"_Aibou_, lie back!" It was more of a command this time. Yugi fell back against Téa, and her arms once more snaked into place around his chest.

"You took a fall for big mouth over there—" Joey cocked his head toward Kaiba— "and we summoned Atem to take your place and finish the duel."

"You… _what_?" Then Yugi got a strange look in his eye and twisted his neck around to look up at Téa. "This was your idea."

She nodded.

He turned back to Atem. "If you took my place, we must've won, right? But…" His focus shifted from Atem to the murky purple shadows still shrouding the chamber. "We're still in the Shadow Game. We didn't _lose_, did we?"

"No, we won," Mai said, speaking for the first time since Atem had been summoned. "But, big surprise—Ramesses did a runner when he figured out he was about to lose. We're kind of in a holding pattern until we figure out where he got off to."

"Atem sent Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl looking for them," Joey added.

Yugi processed this with surprising speed. "Okay, so when they find him—" He stopped short, his eyes widening in alarm at Atem. "Other Me! You're hurt!" He struggled to sit up once more, but Téa kept him firmly in place.

Atem straightened from the slump he'd been gradually slipping into. "I'm fine, Partner."

Téa pressed her lips together the way she did whenever she was being maternal. "No, you're not fine. We've got to get you out of here. Yugi has a plan—"

Atem scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Yes, I know." He gave Yugi a fond look. "It's a terrible plan."

"It is not!" Yugi scowled at him.

Téa let out a long breath, her eyes darting from Yugi to Atem as if she were weighing something. "I thought so, too—at first. But Yugi's right. You don't belong here. And…" She lowered her gaze and spoke in almost a whisper. "And you don't belong with us." Then she looked up at him again, resolute. "But you do belong with _Yugi_. He's your anchor. Always has been. Doing this—it's _right_."

Atem met her gaze, and something passed between them, like lines being drawn and redrawn. Then he sagged, his eyes closing as if he were too fatigued to say more.

"Atem?" The alarm in Téa's voice matched the fear in Joey's heart.

Serenity tentatively put her hand out and touched Atem's shoulder. "I think maybe I can help you, too."

Yugi blinked. "Mystical Elf can heal him, even if it's not battle damage?"

"I… I'm not sure. But I think she should be able to at least strengthen him temporarily." She gave Atem a questioning look. "May I try?"

Without opening his eyes, he nodded his assent, and she turned to Mystical Elf, who began chanting again, and immediately the sphere resumed glowing. She released it, and it settled itself over Atem, bathing him in its white light before returning to Mystical Elf's hands. She bowed her head to Serenity.

"Thank you," Serenity said, sounding tired enough to start Joey worrying again.

"Other Me, are you all right? Do you feel any better?"

Atem opened his eyes and sat up straight, rolling his shoulders experimentally. "I do feel a little stronger, yes. Thank you, Serenity."

"It's nothing." She ducked her head, embarrassed.

Téa tightened her grip on Yugi, watching Atem like he might evaporate. "We shouldn't have called you. It was too much. Yugi told me how he called to you in that nightmare Shadow Game, and I thought you could finish the duel for him, but it was too much to ask of you, to fight our battles again. We shouldn't have— No. _I _shouldn't have called for you."

"Of course you should have." Atem leaned forward, his eyes intense. "You said I don't belong with you, and you're right. But my heart—that is always with you. You—all of you—" He looked around, his gaze encompassing not just Téa and Yugi or even Joey and Tristan, but extending to Serenity, to Mai, to Kaiba and Mokuba. "You are a part of me." He looked directly at Téa once more, raising his right hand with its back facing her. "I am bonded to you forever, even if we each have our place where we belong. You were right to call me."

He held her gaze a moment, and Joey sensed that they'd come to some sort of unspoken accord, and then Téa nodded, blinking back tears and clinging to Yugi as if he were a life preserver. No one said anything until Yugi broke the silence.

"Um… Téa? A little air here?"

"Oh, sorry!" She let him go, looking embarrassed, but he sat up and faced her, touching her arm.

"It's okay," he said with a significant look.

She nodded, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. "I know."

Joey wasn't quite sure if the moment had been something meant just for the three of them, but he didn't know how long they would have Atem with them, and there was suddenly so much to say. "Atem, I told you when you left that even in a thousand years you would still be our friend. It's only been three years, so you'd better believe you're always in our hearts, too. I'm not sorry we called you, even if it means we have to say good-bye all over again when we get you out of—" He frowned, looking at Yugi. "Hey, wait. There's a plan? Since when?"

Yugi let out a huff of air. "Yeah, that's right. I haven't had a chance to fill you in because you and Mai were in Tahiti. It's kind of a long story."

"And now is not the time for long stories," Atem said, all business again. "Serenity, I have a favor to ask of you."

She raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Me?"

"Yes. Do you and Mystical Elf have enough strength left to heal one more person?"

Joey chewed his lip as he watched his sister, who seemed almost as if she had taken on Atem's fatigue herself as a cost of healing him. He shook his head. "You can't wear yourself out trying to fix everybody else, Sis. There's a limit to what you can do."

"I know, _Onii-chan_. But I think we can help one more." She nodded to Atem. "Who is it?"

He stood up and closed his eyes. "Seto! _Iw sedjem eny. Iw iash i! Iw ii eny!_"

There was a sort of shimmer in the air, like a transparent curtain being pushed aside, and then a tall figure in long robes and an elaborate headdress materialized in front of them—an ancient Egyptian with Kaiba's face.

* * *

Kaiba's jaw clenched as the all-too-familiar figure appeared before them. He looked a little weak—not as bad as the Pharaoh had been before Mystical Elf had healed him, but certainly not the strong, fit man Kaiba remembered from his visions. When he saw the Pharaoh, he bowed his head slightly and said something in Egyptian.

"_Nii-sama_! Is that…?"

Kaiba didn't answer his brother. What could he say? The man had his face. It was obvious who he was.

"Oh, my God!"

Kaiba felt something turn sour in his stomach as he remembered Sara. She was gaping at the newcomer, her hand over her mouth, her eyes wide, and her face even more pale than usual. Kaiba's jaw clenched harder.

The—priest? King?—saw her as well, his face registering astonishment as he stared at her. Kaiba's fists clenched as hard as his jaw, and he had to resist the urge to put his hand on Sara's shoulder to claim her. The Pharaoh—Atem—said something quickly in Egyptian. Despite the fact that Kaiba could read hieroglyphics, he didn't understand the spoken language well enough to follow, although he could guess at the topic. After a moment, the words seemed to break through the priest's paralysis. His eyes moved from Sara to meet Kaiba's, and he nodded slowly, turning back to the Pharaoh and answering him in Egyptian.

Sara, still in shock, shrank back against Kaiba. Again, he fought the urge to put his hand on her shoulder. _She's not mine. All of this, everything—it's _always_ been about _him_, not me._ But she looked so shaken, so overwhelmed and in need of… _something_ that he could no longer resist the impulse to reach out to her. She didn't respond to his touch at all, however, and Kaiba wondered if she even knew he was there.

The Pharaoh said something else, and then turned to Wheeler's sister. "Serenity?"

She started, looking a little stunned by the newcomer herself. But then she lowered her head and Mystical Elf let her sphere bathe him in its light. This time, when the glow subsided and the ball settled back in Mystical Elf's hands, she dissolved into a beam of light that settled over Serenity before disappearing completely. The Pharaoh, meanwhile, started conversing with his cousin in Egyptian again.

Mokuba poked Kaiba's arm with his finger. "Hey, Seto, you don't know what they're saying, do you?"

Kaiba shook his head, but Sara apparently was more aware of her surroundings than he would have given her credit. Without taking her eyes off of the two Egyptians, she said, "H-h-he's explaining about the game, how P-Professor Julius ran off. He wants Set— He wants him to go look for him with those two magicians he sent.'"

After a moment, Kaiba's doppelganger put his hands together and raised his eyes upward. "Duos! _Iw sedjem eny. Iw iash nisu! Iw ii eny!_" A creature that looked vaguely human, but with leathery blue skin and dragon-like wings, appeared. The Egyptian said a few words to the blue monster, and then the two disappeared together.

The Pharaoh, looking drained again, sat down beside Yugi and Téa once more, but his expression was resolute. "I won't leave without him, _Aibou_. I want to make that perfectly clear." He then gave Kaiba a somewhat pointed look.

Yugi suddenly looked sheepish. "Yeah, about that. I haven't exactly mentioned it to Kaiba yet."

Kaiba took his hand from Sara's shoulder and crossed his arms. "Mentioned what to me yet?"

Yugi sighed. "Uh… the thing is, Kaiba, in order to get Atem's and Seto's souls out of the Shadow Realm and back to the afterlife, they need to have bodies that are intact. And since the other me shared my body for three years, I realized that I can be a substitute. I'm pretty sure Ishizu can come up with a ritual that would transfer the connection from the destroyed body to mine."

Wheeler's jaw dropped. "Say what?"

"That's the plan, Joey. That's how we're going to get him out."

"But… but… don't you have to be… you know… _dead_?"

"I don't think so. One of the most important parts of the Egyptian funeral is a ritual called the Opening of the Mouth."

Sara gasped, drawing their attention to her. "The Opening of the Mouth. Its whole purpose is to _reanimate_ the body. To the Egyptians, the body is, in a sense, still alive."

"Mm hm."

She shook her head as if trying to make sense of what he's saying. "So you actually think you can substitute _yourself_? Perform a funeral with you in the place of Atem's body? A _pharaoh's_ funeral? You think this can work?"

"He lived in my body for three years. We're connected."

Kaiba suddenly saw where this was going. He watched Sara a moment as she processed this, skepticism giving way to hope.

Yugi looked sheepish again as he tiptoed around the point, clearly not wanting to ask anything of anyone other than himself. "And, well, Kaiba, since you did feel it when Seto was… when the desecration happened—"

"You what?" Sara looked up at him. "You never told me anything like that! What's he on about?"

Kaiba kept his face as unyielding as stone. "I don't know what I felt. It could have been heartburn for all I know."

"Oh, give me a break, Seto!" Mokuba threw up his hands in exasperation. "It was like someone stabbing your heart at the exact same time the tomb was raided, and Yugi felt the same thing two hours earlier when they got the other Yugi's tomb. You know it's not a coincidence, so stop pretending it is."

Sara stared at him. "Seto…"

Something about the way she said his name—or was it really _his_ name?—made Kaiba's throat run dry. He wrenched his eyes off her, turning to Yugi. "So you want me to play substitute dead body in some funeral, too."

"Listen, Kaiba, I know it—"

"I'll do it."

"—sounds…. Wait. What?"

He could almost feel Sara's eyes boring into him, but he forced himself to keep his attention fixed on Yugi. "Save your speeches, Yugi. I'll do it."

"Seto?" This time the name was a question, but he didn't want to know what answers she sought. Before she could say more, he turned and walked away.


	16. Deeper into the Shadows

**16. Deeper into the Shadows**

Everything hurt. It was like last May, after he'd lost the shadow war. Then it had taken him days just to become lucid again, and another few weeks to fully recover.

This was worse. He hadn't lost, not yet, but the shadows had turned on him. He had violated the terms of his own Dark Game by having Dark Dust Spirit remove him from the field, and now he was paying the price. Sweat poured from him as if he were back in Egypt on the hottest day of the year, but he was shivering, the shadows biting into his skin like frost. He huddled on the ground, his arms wrapped around his knees, not even knowing where he was. Somewhere in the Shadow Realm, somewhere deep.

He knew he had to get out of here, but the only way out was through victory, and the fever was playing havoc with his mind. The shadows seemed alive, reaching for him and snapping at him. He'd summoned Reshef immediately, reciting the Final Ritual of the Ancients from memory. His guardian monster's presence seemed to help keep the shadows at bay and his thoughts more or less coherent, but he knew he did not have much time. He had to find a way back, to attack them and finish them off—one of them, even, was all it would take. Destroy even one of them, and he would be the victor. The shadows would release their claim on him, and he could retreat, regroup, plan anew.

How had it come to this? He'd so carefully planned everything, thought of every contingency—except for the arrival of the Nameless Pharaoh. That damnable bastard child of Egypt who had reigned for less than a week. How dare he interfere yet again! How dare he usurp the power of the shadows yet again! He was less than a footnote in the annals of history, barely existing at all, and yet he presumed to take the shadows from _Ramesses the Great_? He would pay. He would lose everything—not just his own soul, but the soul of his precious vessel as well. All of them would be decimated before Ramesses was finished.

Gradually, he could feel his mind begin to clear, the anger pushing back the fever a bit and keeping it at bay. If he could keep that clarity just a little while longer, he could make his way back to the entry to the Shadow Realm, back to the Dark Game that stood as a bridge between the physical and the spiritual. He would defeat them, painfully. All he had to do was stand up and hang onto the anger and the stability it brought.

* * *

"I've had enough waiting around. I'm gonna go look for Julius myself."

Yugi had to smile as Atem rolled his eyes at Kaiba. For some reason, being an observer of rather than a participant in their rivalry amused Yugi, almost enough to make him forget his irritation that Atem, Téa, Joey, Tristan, and Serenity were all still hovering around him like he might wither away on the spot. Atem looked up at Kaiba with the strained patience of a master _sensei_ dealing with a particularly slow student. "It isn't that simple, Kaiba."

"Watch me make it that simple."

"I'm going with you," Mokuba said.

"No, you're not."

Atem huffed out an exasperated breath. "Neither one of you are going anywhere. The Shadow Realm isn't like physical space, Kaiba. You can't just walk around in it. There are many levels, and most of them you cannot enter in physical form."

Kaiba shot him an impatient look. "Meaning?"

"Meaning, Shadow Games are merely the entryways to the deeper levels of the Shadow Realm. You can play a Shadow Game in your physical body, like we did in Duelist Kingdom or Battle City, or you can leave your physical body behind and play it in a spiritual body known as the _Sahu_."

"Like the Memory World?" Joey asked.

Atem nodded. "Or the virtual world, or the first Dark Game we played with Bakura."

"Or the nightmare games Ramesses called us into," Yugi added.

Téa squeezed his arm, her nails digging into his skin even through his sleeve. "Don't remind me."

"Yes, the nightmare games are another example," Atem agreed. "Your physical bodies remained where they lay, while your spirits traveled to the Shadow Realm in the spiritual body, the _Sahu_."

"W-wait." Sara looked apprehensive about interrupting, or talking to Atem at all, but she was clearly confused. "The _Sahu_ is the spiritual body that appears from the physical body after the judgment of the dead. People can't just—living people, I mean—can't just pick one up at the corner market."

"No, but the Millennium Items were created to let the living access the realm of the dead. They were used to judge the living in much the same way Anubis judged the dead. They had the power to separate souls from the physical body and to create a _Sahu_ for the living."

She blinked, looking a little out of her depth. "Right then. Carry on."

Atem turned back to Yugi. "But in this duel, you are physically present, are you not?"

"Mm hm." Yugi wiggled slightly to loosen Téa's grasp on him. "And the deeper levels are not accessible to the physical body. Like Penalty Games."

"Like when I was trapped in the hourglass," Mai said. She rubbed her arms, and Joey immediately got up and moved to her side, putting his arm around her shoulder.

"Yes. He could not have left the Shadow Realm without finishing the duel, so the only possibility is that he went deeper. Somewhere your physical bodies cannot go."

"Whoa, wait a second." Joey put up his free hand. "How could _he_ go there, then? I mean, he just popped out of here with Dark Dust Spirit like he was doing a magic act at a kid's birthday party."

"He obviously is here in _Sahu_ form."

"That can't be right." Tristan jumped into the conversation, his hand scratching the back of his head. "He was standing here waiting for us before the Shadow Game was even called."

Joey nodded. "That's what I'm saying. You can't just walk around in the real world in one of those _Sahu_-thingies, can you?"

"No." Atem gave Yugi a sideways glance while still addressing Joey. "If that were possible, my partner wouldn't have been forced to put up with me sharing his body for three years."

Yugi ducked his head, his voice quiet. "I'm not sorry it worked out the way it did." Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Atem smile in gratitude.

"Okay," Serenity said from beside Tristan. "So how did Professor Julius do it? How could he be here in physical form before the game was called, but then still pop out of here the way he did?"

Yugi frowned, stroking his chin thoughtfully. "I'm not so sure we did see him before the game was called. Remember how he said our ante included everyone's soul, and that by walking into the chamber, we'd already all accepted his challenge? If that's true, then he had to have called the Dark Game before we even arrived."

Kaiba crossed his arms. "What are you saying? That the spineless toad was dueling by proxy again?"

"Not by proxy, not exactly," Atem corrected. "But definitely in spirit form."

"But how?" Joey asked. "His body must be somewhere. How did his spirit end up here?"

Yugi's eyes widened. "Sara."

She looked startled at this. "Excuse me?"

"He brought you here, then used you as a focal point, just like he used Mai and Joey as focal points to call the nightmare games."

Sara folded her arms across her chest, looking uncomfortable.

"So he gets another get-out-of-jail-free card, is that it?" Mai looked furious. "He drags me into my own personal hell, but he can't even be bothered to show up for his own Dark Game? That son of a _bitch_."

Atem shook his head. "Not a get-out-of-jail-free card, no. He's trapped here, same as we are, until the game finishes. And if he loses…"

"He's already lost more duels than Rex and Weevil combined." Joey started ticking them off on his hand. "Pegasus beat Evan. We beat Rex and Weevil. Yugi and Kaiba beat Evan again. Then we all beat Ramesses in that shadow war. Mai's nightmare game, my nightmare game. The guy's done nothing _but_ lose, and yet he still weasels his way back. When's he gonna get his Penalty Game, huh?"

Yugi looked up at Joey, troubled. "No Penalty Games. We're not in the vengeance business, Joey."

"Since when?" Kaiba asked.

"My partner is right." Atem met Yugi's eye, his expression both contrite and grateful. "Our goal is to stop him, not punish him. There are earthly authorities for that. But he called this game, not us, and he has not kept to its terms. Whether we want one or not, I suspect there will be a Penalty Game."

* * *

Ramesses forced himself to his feet, staggering slightly as his head swam. The shadows hissed at him, but Reshef stood between them and him. The hissing grew louder, until it became a wail, and the shadows parted, giving way to a faint blue glow. It was then that he realized it wasn't the shadows themselves, but rather another distinct presence in them. Light and matter coalesced until it took the shape of a creature with which he was unfamiliar. It was tall and humanoid, with leathery blue skin and bat-like wings. It carried an enormous sword in its right hand, almost as if the sword and arm were one. Once it had fully formed, it brandished the sword at Reshef, roaring in fury.

The roar must have been a summons of some sort, because a second figure immediately materialized behind it. This one was fully human, dressed in the very familiar robes of an ancient Egyptian high priest or even a pharaoh. _The Nameless Pharaoh!_ But no, this was someone else. Someone familiar….

The man called out something in Egyptian, and Ramesses knew he should understand, but his mind was too taxed to put meaning to the words. If the words were ambiguous, the intention was not, however—the man was ordering his monster to attack.

"No, it's _my_ move!" Reacting on pure instinct, Ramesses began to chant the incantation to activate Reshef's special ability. The glowing spheres of light that connected his guardian's upper body to its arms and trunk began to pulse, halting the blue creature in mid-attack. As if drawn by a magnet, it left its master and came to stand beside Reshef in front of Ramesses. The Egyptian was left defenseless, and Ramesses smiled, his strength returning to him as he called the attack.

The blue monster went first, slashing at its own master with the sword that grew out of its right arm. The Egyptian cried out in agony and fell to his knees. Then it was Reshef's turn. The three spheres glowed brighter still, electrifying the atmosphere around him. There was a moment of silence so complete it was as if all sound had ceased to exist, and then everything returned to normal. The Egyptian, already on his knees, crumpled completely.

Reshef's temporary hold over the blue monster ended, and it returned to its fallen master, roaring in impotent fury. The shadows hissed again, and two more areas of light took shape across from him. These he recognized—when they were fully formed, Ramesses found himself facing Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl. Dark Magician took in the scene, gasping when he saw the Egyptian lying unconscious behind his monster. "Master Seto!"

Seto? Something clicked in Ramesses' mind. The Nameless Pharaoh's successor! That's why he looked familiar—he resembled Seto Kaiba.

* * *

Kaiba grunted, sick of the nonsense, sick of the mystical blatherings about Shadow Realms and Penalty Games, sick of not being able to just handle things the way he'd always handled things—on his own. "Getting back to the point, how are we—" He stopped short without warning, completely out of breath, as if he'd been punched in the gut.

"Kaiba?" Yugi's eyes looked quizzical, while the Pharaoh's narrowed in scrutiny.

Kaiba put up his hand, and abruptly the air was back. "I—"

"_Nii-sama_, what's wrong?"

"Seto?"

Kaiba clenched his jaw. The last thing he wanted was Sara's pity. "Nothing's wrong. I'm fine."

"What happened?" the Pharaoh asked, still with that look like he was a puzzle to be solved.

"Nothing," Kaiba repeated, annoyed. "Probably just some residual effect from all those side attacks."

The Pharaoh shook his head slowly. "I don't think so. You're connected to my cousin…"

Yugi eyed his counterpart with concern. "You think the other Seto is hurt or in danger?"

"Oh, not this again!" Kaiba rolled his eyes. "Do you dorks also believe every time a bell rings, an angel gets his wings? I needed five seconds to catch my breath! It doesn't have any greater significance than that."

As if Kaiba had never spoken, the Pharaoh directed his response to Yugi. "I don't know. He may have found Ramesses. Duos is a skilled hunter; that's why Seto summoned him."

"Do you think they're dueling?" Joey asked.

"Possibly. There's no way of knowing unless he calls for me."

Yugi's brow creased. "I thought you could see duels of the people you're connected to."

"Only in the Shadow Game level. I cannot see deeper."

"Getting back to the point," Kaiba said. "Even if… your _cousin_ did find him and can tell us where he is, how are we supposed to finish this duel if we can't go wherever it is he went?"

"You don't. Only Seto and I are here in _Sahu_ form. We are the only ones who can travel to wherever Ramesses has fled. That's why I sent Mahad and Mana—like all Duel Monsters, they are also in _Sahu_ form. When one of them finds him and comes for me, I will face him alone."

* * *

Ramesses tried to ignore the shadows that were snapping at him like a river full of piranha, instead focusing his attention on his opponents.

Dark Magician took only a fraction of a second to gauge the situation before turning to his apprentice. "Mana, see to Master Seto. Return with him at once to the Pharaoh!" The pretty blonde magician nodded in obedience, and flying to the ancient Egyptian's aid while Dark Magician whirled around and directed his staff at Reshef. "Dark Magic Attack!"

Ramesses grunted in irritation. The fool! He and Reshef were equal in strength; both would go to the graveyard. Dark Magician Girl realized this as well. "Master, no! You'll be destroyed!"

"It doesn't matter, so long as I take that creature with me!"

Ramesses raised his arm. "I'm afraid I'll have to deny you that satisfaction. I use Ring of Nine Lives to protect Reshef the Dark Being!" A set of nine glowing golden rings appeared, encircling Reshef around his waist. Ramesses laughed—Dark Magician's attack would now rebound back on himself and destroy him while not harming Reshef in the slightest.

Dark Magician reacted with astonishing speed. "Redirect… Dark Magic Attack, destroy Ring of Nine Lives!"

A beam of green energy shot from Dark Magician's staff, blasting apart all nine rings. Ramesses let out a growl of frustration; he'd forgotten that Dark Magic Attack could specifically target spells and traps. However, that left him unable to attack for the time being, and neither Dark Magician Girl nor Seto's blue monster were powerful enough to destroy Reshef, so Ramesses moved in for the counterattack. Once again, he recited the incantation that would allow Reshef to control an opponent's monster, this time choosing Dark Magician. The spellcaster fought against the force pulling him to the other side of the field, but once there, he turned, facing his female counterpart, who was still struggling to collect Seto. Ramesses' lips curled into a malevolent grin. "Dark Magician, attack Dark Magician Girl!"

Dark Magician leveled his staff but, as another green blast of energy shot from his staff, Dark Magician Girl called out, "Magical Pigeons!" She disappeared in a puff of smoke, to be replaced by two pigeons. The shot from Dark Magician's staff destroyed one pigeon, leaving only the blue monster and the second pigeon on the field.

"Reshef, attack Seto's monster!"

Reshef glowed again, then attacked in its eerie silence. The blue monster stiffened, going completely still, then imploded, falling in on upon itself until it disappeared into nothing. Seto's body convulsed, his _Ba_, or life energy, tied to that of his monster. Reshef was already beginning to lose its hold on Dark Magician, who was straining to return to his own side of the field. Without Ring of Nine Lives to protect Reshef, Dark Magician surely would sacrifice himself to destroy it, and Ramesses couldn't afford to lose his guardian. A thought occurred to him—a way to provide Reshef and any other monster he might summon long-term protection. It was risky, however. The shadows were already against him, and summoning a monster that wasn't truly his would not help matters. But he'd _earned_ access to his servant's monsters, and the shadows would not deny him. "Revival Jam! _Iw sedjem eny. Iw iash i! Iw ii eny!_ Defend me!"

There was another hiss from the shadows as formless metallic blob, like a giant drop of quicksilver, appeared beside Reshef. Marik Ishtar's favorite defense monster. A wave of nausea passed through Ramesses, and he started shivering again, feeling feverish once more. He gritted his teeth—_I _earned_ this monster. Marik Ishtar is _my servant_. His monsters are mine!_

Reshef's control of Dark Magician evaporated, and the purple-robed wizard returned to his own side of the field at the same time as the second pigeon disintegrated and Dark Magician Girl reappeared in its place, unharmed. Immediately, her master turned to her. "Mana, go now! Bring the Pharaoh!" This time, Dark Magician Girl did not hesitate. With her arm wrapped securely around Seto's chest, she waved her staff and disappeared. Dark Magician then raised his own staff and pointed it at Reshef. "Dark Magic Attack!"

"And again, I must deny you the satisfaction of destroying my guardian. Jam Defender, protect my monster!" A trap sprung into existence, forcing Revival Jam to get in the way of any attack directed at Ramesses' side of the field. The quicksilver mass slithered in front of Reshef, intercepting the bolt of energy from Dark Magician's staff. It was vaporized on contact, splashes of silver flying everywhere. As each drop landed, it would instantly begin sliding back toward the center, where all the droplets reformed into the silver mass once more. It cost Ramesses—he could feel the fever eating away at him, and it became harder to focus. But so long as Revival Jam and Jam Defender were intact, no other monsters could be attacked.

Reshef was safe. And Dark Magician Girl had been sent for the Nameless Pharaoh. All he had to do was stand his ground, and his opportunity for escape from the shadows—and for revenge—would come to him.


	17. Passing the Torch

**17. Passing the Torch**

Téa felt Yugi tense beside her at Atem's announcement, but before he could say anything, Kaiba went completely apoplectic. "Like hell, you're facing him alone! Listen Yugi—or Atem, or whatever the hell you want to call yourself—I don't care if you're a spirit or a pharaoh or a goddamn _god_! This is _my_ fight! That bastard messed with my company, sank a ship I was on, nearly had my brother killed, kidnapped Sara—" His mouth snapped shut as if he'd said too much.

Atem grunted in annoyance. "This isn't about what he did to whom, Kaiba, and it isn't about your damnable pride! I'll face him because I'm the only one who _can_."

"Like hell! This guy is a fourth-rate hack that makes even Wheeler look moderately talented." Kaiba ignored Joey's cry of protest. "There's no _way_ he can go anywhere I can't follow."

"Kaiba—"

"He's right, Other Me."

Everyone looked at Yugi in surprise, and Atem arched his eyebrow. "Excuse me? You're taking _Kaiba's_ side?"

"He's right," Yugi repeated. "You're wrong, and he's right."

"_Aibou_—"

"No, Other Me, listen." Yugi clenched his hands on his knees in agitation, and Téa realized how difficult it was for him to challenge his other self. The precious few times he'd done it in the past had always been times of moral crisis and had resulted in catastrophic or near catastrophic loss for Yugi. Téa wanted to reach for him again and pull him back into the shelter of her arms, but she knew she had to let him fight this one on his own. He took a breath. "This isn't your fight. It's ours. It's _mine_. I _defeated_ you, Other Me, and I did it so you could 'put down your sword' and _stop __fighting_. This battle is mine."

Atem crossed his arms. "And how do you propose to follow after Ramesses?"

"The same way I followed after Mai, and after Joey. I was the bearer of the Millennium Puzzle, Other Me. I can call a Dark Game, and I can enter one as a _Sahu_, just as you can."

"No!" Téa surprised even herself with her sudden outburst. "No, Yugi, it's too much! You're hurt. You could've— You're _hurt_. You can't keep putting yourself in harm's way over and over again. It's too much!"

He sighed, meeting her gaze. "I have to, Téa. You know that."

She swallowed, wanting Yugi to be strong, to not need Atem or her or anyone, but more than that, she wanted him to be _safe_. For some reason, it had been easier before, when she thought Atem and Yugi were really the same. But seeing them together, yet separate, made her afraid of losing Yugi—_her_ Yugi—all over again. "Yugi…"

"No way, pal." Joey looked down at Yugi and clasped his shoulder. "_You_ don't have to. _We_ have to. You ain't doing this alone, Yuge. We're going with you."

Atem shook his head. "You _can't_. Even if my partner is right about his ability to go in my place—" He looked directly at Yugi— "and that's a big 'if'—none of the rest of you carried Millennium Items. You just can't go further into the Shadow Realm as physical beings."

"And when has that ever stopped us?" Joey grinned. "Think about it. Bakura's Dark Game. Pegasus's. The Memory World. Have you ever gone into the Shadow Realm without me, Tristan, and Téa going in after you? One way or another, we fight together, just like always."

"He's right, Other Me."

"_Aibou_, there is no way—"

He was cut off by a whistling noise like wind through the trees, and then Dark Magician Girl appeared out of thin air. Slung over her shoulder, disturbingly lifeless, was the other Seto. She quickly spotted Atem. "Pharaoh!"

"Mana! _Seto_!" Atem got to his feet, then knelt down where Dark Magician Girl gently laid Seto down on the ground. Touching his cousin's face, Atem looked up at her. "What happened?"

"Duos and Master Seto found Ramesses first. Duos called out for us, but by the time Master Mahad and I arrived, Master Seto was already unconscious. Reshef the Dark Being was protecting Ramesses. He must have taken control of Duos and attacked Master Seto."

"And where is Mahad?"

"He stayed behind to keep Ramesses at bay, but it's a stalemate. Ramesses used Revival Jam to protect Reshef."

Yugi frowned. "Revival Jam? That's not his monster. It's Marik's."

Dark Magician Girl nodded. "Yes. He is summoning his 'servant's' monsters."

"He can do that?"

"Apparently. But not without cost."

"One way or another, the shadows will have their Penalty Game." Atem clenched his jaw. "What about Seto? He won't survive the Shadow Realm long in this condition."

"I can help him."

They all looked at Serenity, but Joey was quick to protest. "Nuh-uh, Serenity. You've done enough. Look at you! You're exhausted!"

Téa had to admit Joey had a point. Serenity looked pale and a little drawn, as if each time Mystical Elf healed someone, it took its strength from her. But her eyes were sharp and determined. "He's _dying_, Joey. And not just death like we think of it. He'll be _nothing_ if we don't help him."

Atem looked at her. "Do you have the strength to help him, Serenity?"

She smiled. "Mystical Elf gets her healing strength from the number of allies on the field, right?" She reached next to her and took Tristan's hand in hers, holding it up as a demonstration. "This is where I get my strength. We _all_ get our strength from each other. I can do this." She turned to Joey. "I _have_ to do this."

Joey just glared, but Mai walked over and put her hand on Serenity's shoulder. "Go for it, kiddo. I'm with you."

Serenity nodded and closed her eyes and summoned Mystical Elf once more. She appeared, and her sphere of light immediately settled over Seto, bathing him in its healing glow. When it was finished, Mystical Elf vanished, and Serenity slumped over, Tristan catching her before she could fall.

"Serenity!" Joey lurched forward, but Mai held him back with an outstretched hand.

"I'm okay." Serenity's voice was breathy and weak, and she was leaning on Tristan more heavily than Téa would've liked to see, but she did seem all right. "How's… how is he?"

Téa looked back over where Atem knelt down beside the other Seto, whose eyes were blinking open. He muttered something in Egyptian, and Atem answered back in kind, then turned to the rest of them. "He's weak, but conscious." Seto tried to sit up, but Atem held him down, admonishing him in Egyptian. He surrendered without too much struggle, closing his eyes again.

"My pharaoh, we must return to help Master Mahad," Dark Magician Girl urged.

"Yes. I am ready." But the shaky way he rose to his feet belied the strength in his words.

"No!" Yugi jumped up and addressed Dark Magician Girl. "He and Seto are staying. I'm going."

"_We're_ going," Joey corrected.

Dark Magician Girl nodded, then flew over to Téa and settled in beside her. Téa blinked, momentarily surprised. After watching Atem relate to her as the old friend she had once been to him, Téa had forgotten that Dark Magician Girl was _her_ guardian monster. She stood up, preparing herself mentally for the battle ahead. It was always easier to let Yugi do what he had to do if she could be there beside him.

Kaiba stepped forward quickly. "So instead of the dead pharaoh, it's the dork squad going after him? Not exactly an improvement."

Dark Magician Girl cocked her head at him. "You can go as well, Seto Kaiba. Like Yugi, Joey, Tristan, and Téa, you have already traveled this pathway into the Shadow Realm in spirit form. Where the Pharaoh's other half goes, you can follow."

Kaiba rolled his eyes. _"Great."_

"No!" The strength in Atem's voice belied the fatigue Téa could see in his eyes. "I will go."

"Other Me, stop!" Yugi looked thoroughly exasperated.

"What about the rest of us?" Mai asked.

Dark Magician Girl shook her head. "I do not have the power to separate anyone's spirit from their physical form. Only the bearers of the Millennium Items had that power, and without the Items present, only those who have traveled this path before can repeat the journey."

"But I've been to the Shadow Realm." Mai crossed her arms. "Hell, it's pretty much ruled my life for the past four and a half years. And I played one of those nightmare duels in 'spirit form,' or _Sahu_, or whatever you call it. That should qualify me."

"It's not the same. You've played in Dark Games and been subject to a Penalty Game, yes, but you have not traveled _across_ the Shadow Realm as these five have." She indicated Yugi, Téa, Joey, Tristan, and Kaiba with a sweep of her staff.

"So Serenity, Mokuba, Sara, and I are just supposed to sit and wait? Maybe darn socks and roll bandages while you're gone?"

"It's a moot question, because _none of you are going_," Atem insisted.

"Yes, we are," Yugi countered, equally adamant.

Sara shook her head, offering them a rueful smile. "I rather think I've had enough insanity to last me a good long while. I'm fine staying." Then her expression softened. "But do be careful." Her eyes settled on Kaiba. "Please." He was still refusing to look at her, however.

"Well, I'm not fine staying," Mokuba said. "Seto needs me!"

"No, Mokuba."

"Seto—"

Kaiba leveled his gaze at his brother. "Mokuba, stay with Sara."

Sara looked a little surprised that Kaiba was suddenly acknowledging her presence again, but she nodded in agreement, stepping up beside Mokuba to put an arm on his shoulder. "That's right, Mokuba. I need you here. This is still too new to me."

Mai tapped her foot. "That's all well and good for them, but this is my battle as much as it is any of yours. I'm the one he went after first."

Joey jerked his head toward Serenity. "Look at Serenity, Mai. She's completely drained. I need you to stay with her. For me."

Mai's glare looked like it could burn right through him. "Don't you coddle me, Joey Wheeler! I'm not some little girl who needs pop psychology—"

"We don't have time for this!" There was urgency to Dark Magician Girl's voice. "My master will not last against Ramesses alone for long. We must go _now_."

Atem shook his head. "Mana, you know I am better equipped—"

Yugi threw his hands up in the air. "No, you're not, Other Me! Look at you! You can barely stand!"

"I'm not the one who was unconscious moments ago!"

"No, you're the one who's been in the Shadow Realm for two weeks. Mystical Elf healed me, but she can't completely heal you. Serenity said so herself."

"There's no way I'm going to let you put yourself in danger!"

Yugi sighed. "I _defeated_ you, Other Me."

"_Aibou_…." The protest died on Atem's lips as his eyes locked on Yugi's, and Téa could see the war inside Atem mirroring her own internal battle, wanting Yugi to be strong, yet wanting to protect him. At last, he lowered his head, his shoulders slumped in defeat. "You're right, _Aibou_. You're right. My time has come and gone. This is your time now. Yours and your—_our_ friends'. You don't need me."

Yugi looked stricken. Stepping over to his other self, he put a hand on his shoulder. "I'll _always_ need you, Other Me. But yes, it's my turn to fight."

Atem looked up, meeting Yugi's eyes once more with an intense look. "You said that I will never really leave you, that together we're complete. Do you believe that's true? Am I always with you?"

Yugi nodded without hesitation. "Always."

"You have always been my strength, from the very beginning." Atem grasped Yugi's hand between both of his. "My power is yours, _Aibou_."

Yugi's eyes widened in surprise as something passed between them, then Atem let go of his hand and sunk weakly to his knees.

"Other Me!" Yugi dropped down beside him.

Téa gasped and took a step forward before she forced herself to stop. _You aren't a part of this_, she told herself.

Atem put his hand up. "I'm fine. Go and finish this, and then you can worry about me." Then he smiled at Yugi. "Your plan to bring us back from the Shadow Realm—you do realize that if you have a pharaoh's funeral, in the eyes of the heavens and of Duat, you will _be_ a pharaoh."

Yugi scowled. "Yeah, right."

"I mean it. You are a true leader. You've earned the title."

"Pharaoh, please, we must go quickly," Dark Magician Girl reminded him.

Atem looked up at Dark Magician Girl, then raised his eyebrows, eyeing her and Téa together as if a thought had just occurred to him. He leaned into Yugi, whispering something Téa couldn't hear. In response, Yugi blushed a deep red and pushed Atem away. "Stop picking on me!"

Atem laughed, a deep resonating laugh that made Téa's heart ache with the memories. Then, Yugi threw his arms around his other self and they held each other in a tight embrace.

Dark Magician Girl tapped her staff in her hand. "We have to _go_…."

Yugi pulled away from Atem and coughed, all business again. "Right." He stood up and looked at the others. "Ready?"

Joey turned to Mai. "Are you—?"

She nodded. "Just go. I'll look after your sister." She looked down at Tristan, against whom Serenity was still leaning. "You, too. The Inner Circle needs you."

"Mai—" Yugi began.

"Never mind, kiddo. It's okay. Just kick his ass for us all."

"What do we do, Yuge?" Joey asked.

Dark Magician Girl answered for him. "Stand together."

Kaiba scoffed. "If you think I'm going to hold hands and sing 'Kum Bah Yah' with you geeks, you're out of what little minds you had to begin with."

Joey made a face. "Like we'd be so crushed if you stayed behind."

"Just stay close, Kaiba," Yugi said as the other four gathered in a close huddle. He didn't have his Millennium Puzzle, but Yugi put his hand to his neck and held onto the three chains hanging there—the Dark Magician pendant and the two cartouches, one with his name and one with Atem's. He closed his eyes and said something in Egyptian, different than what they'd said to summon their monsters, but with a resonance that seemed similar. Téa felt a sharp jerk, like someone yanking her up by the arm, and then there was nothing.


	18. The Final Battle

**18. The Final Battle**

When the world came into focus around him again, Yugi had very little time to regroup. He found himself, along with Joey, Téa, Tristan, Kaiba, and Dark Magician Girl, in a dark, swirling void. In front of them, Dark Magician stood facing Reshef the Dark Being and a silvery, gelatinous mass Yugi recognized as Marik's Revival Jam. Behind Reshef was Professor Julius. He was hunched over and looking a little… frenetic. His black hair, normally brushed back from his face in a smooth pompadour, was now sticking up in odd, erratic angles, and it actually looked grayer than before.

Immediately, Yugi heard shouts of the Egyptian summoning phrase as his friends called their guardians. Blue-Eyes White Dragon, Red-Eyes Black Dragon, and Command Knight appeared in quick succession and lined up in front of Kaiba, Joey, and Tristan respectively. Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl moved into place in front of Yugi and Téa. Yugi realized with some surprise that when they'd left, Tristan and Téa had been without Duel Disks, but now they both had one firmly attached to their left arms. Like in the Memory World, the mere necessity of them made them appear. They weren't needed to hold their decks or play cards, but rather to act as a conduit to summon their guardians, the way the ancient Egyptians had used devices called Diadiankhs.

Professor Julius glared at Yugi, his eyes wild. "You! You're not the Nameless Pharaoh!"

"No, I have a name," Yugi agreed. "And so does Atem."

"No! I don't want the vessel, I want the Pharaoh! I want my revenge!" He sounded like a petulant toddler, his voice cracking in a way that was a little too reminiscent of Marik's dark side when he was losing his grip on reality during his Battle City Duel against Yugi's other self.

Kaiba snorted. "Make up your mind, Julius. You said before he didn't belong in your duel. You do remember your duel, don't you? The one you skipped out on?"

Professor Julius snarled, looking almost feral. "He interfered where he didn't belong, and now he must face me and finish this!"

"_I_ am facing you to finish this. That's enough." Yugi crossed his arms, his legs slightly apart in that stance his other self used whenever he was being commanding.

The professor stared at him a moment, then an ugly, mad grin curled on his lips. "Yes. Yes. The Nameless Pharaoh is already banished to the shadows. To send his vessel there as well… vengeance will be served."

"And I've got a Blue-Eyes White Dragon that says the only one getting any vengeance is _me_." Kaiba raised his arm. "Blue-Eyes, attack Reshef the Dark Being!"

Professor Julius muttered something that Yugi could only hear well enough to tell was Egyptian, but he couldn't make out the actual words. The intent soon became clear, however. Blue-Eyes White Dragon let out a plaintive bellow, and was dragged away from Kaiba to Reshef's side. The professor threw back his head and cackled. "It's _my_ move. Now, Blue-Eyes White Dragon, attack Dark Magician!"

Yugi clenched his fists, and Joey swore, sounding equally frustrated. "I sure could use something like Graceful Dice right about now."

The words were no sooner out of his mouth when there was a low hiss, and a small creature with a ping-pong ball face materialized out of the vapor. He was wearing a top hat with tiny wings on either side of it, and carrying a blue die that was as big as he was. Yugi and Joey gaped at the monster, then at each other.

"What the—?"

"Dude, how'd you do that?" Tristan asked.

Kaiba glared at Joey. "Don't just stand there gawking, you idiot! Roll the die!"

Joey shook his head as if coming to his senses, then called out to the creature to roll his die. It landed on four, giving all of their monsters the equivalent of 400 extra attack points. Blue-Eyes finished its attack on Dark Magician, destroying him, but Yugi felt only minimal damage. Dark Magician Girl gained more strength from the destruction of her master, giving her what would be 2700 attack points if this were a regular duel. Red-Eyes had an attack strength of 2800, and Command Knight was at 1600, but he could not be attacked while there were any other monsters on their side of the field. This left the Professor unable to attack further, as Reshef was weaker than all of their monsters except Command Knight, and Revival Jam was in defense position.

Joey looked at Yugi. "How the hell did I call Graceful Dice? I thought we could only summon our guardians, plus traps and spells specifically connected to them."

Yugi shrugged, bewildered, but Dark Magician Girl answered. "With every Shadow Game, you grow stronger, and your bond with all of the cards that are important to you, not just we guardians, is increasing."

"And we no longer need to summon things in Egyptian?" Yugi asked.

She shook her head. "The shadows are turning on Ramesses because he did not finish the Dark Game he himself called. The walls and the locks that he put into place are disintegrating."

Joey raised his eyebrows. "You mean we can summon any of our monsters or spells and traps?"

"Any with which you share a special connection."

Yugi's eyes narrowed, and he glanced at Kaiba, an idea forming.

"It will not help you," Professor Julius called out from behind Reshef. "The walls may be disintegrating, but that gives me access to more monsters as well. You've no doubt noticed that I have summoned my servant Marik's monster, Revival Jam."

"He's not your servant!" Téa shouted back, and Yugi couldn't help but wonder if Marik was still in her head somewhere.

Professor Julius didn't bother to acknowledge the interruption. "And now I will call another monster from another servant. Spiria! _Iw sedjem eny. Iw iash i! Iw ii eny!_ Defend me!"

A beautiful woman with white wings, long indigo colored hair, and a faint blue tint to her skin appeared beside Revival Jam, kneeling in a defensive posture. Her summons seemed to cost Professor Julius, however. He sucked in a ragged breath and hunched over further, then waved his arm as if swatting at invisible gnats. Then Blue-Eyes, released from Reshef's hold on her, returned with a joyous roar to her place before Kaiba.

Yugi arched an eyebrow. "It seems you are not as connected to your 'servants'' monsters as you would have us think, Professor. The shadows turn on you with every false move."

"I have _earned_ my servants' monsters! I can summon them, and I _will_ use them to defend myself!"

"When we were dueling, I wondered if the way you managed to play such a large portion of your hand every move was because you were cheating or because you had the Heart of the Cards, but it's obvious now that your deck has no heart. It's no better than when Evan Haines played it, or any of your other so-called servants. The only thing your deck has is the ability to siphon off of others. It worked for you for a while, but do you really think here in the Shadow Realm you can get away with it for long? Revival Jam, Spiria, all the monsters Reshef takes for you—they're not _yours_. There is no _heart_, no connection between you and them. You've staked your soul on a deck that doesn't have one, Professor."

"You are your mentor's pupil, aren't you, young Mr. Mutou? Always the romantic. The Shadow Realm is about _power_, not heart. When I win, we shall see whose side the shadows take."

Kaiba grunted. "Please. I couldn't care less about Yugi's little 'Heart of the Card' sermon, but you can't beat Blue-Eyes."

"With Reshef, every turn I'll _own_ Blue-Eyes if I so choose!"

Yugi eyed Kaiba. "Then it's time to _crush_ Reshef, don't you think, Kaiba? I summon Kuriboh in defense mode!"

Kaiba looked at him like he'd completely lost his mind, and then his eyes widened and Yugi could tell he understood.

Professor Julius, however, barked out a mirthless laugh. "You'll have to do better than that!"

Yugi smirked at him. "I wouldn't underestimate this little Kuriboh if I were you. It's often the quiet, unassuming ones that end up having the biggest impact. He's one of my favorites for a reason."

Kaiba rolled his eyes. "And yet another sermon. Screw your little Kuriboh, Yugi; I have Blue-Eyes White Dragon. Attack Reshef with White Lightning Blast!"

It was merely a show, Yugi knew; Kaiba was too skilled a duelist to think Blue-Eyes could get past Revival Jam. Sure enough, the silvery blob took the brunt of the attack, blasting apart into millions of mercurial droplets that reformed into one cohesive mass again as soon as the attack was finished. It was clear, however, that despite Revival Jam's seeming indestructibility, it didn't come without some cost to Professor Julius. He twitched as if he'd been punched in a spot that had been previously injured.

The others noticed as well. Joey sent Red-Eyes in to attack next, with Téa's Dark Magician Girl and Tristan's Command Knight close behind. Each time Revival Jam reformed, it seemed to bend and bruise Professor Julius just a little more.

When all but Kuriboh had attacked, the professor straightened, his eyes glinting and looking slightly unhinged. "You're wasting your time! Now I think I'll bring Blue-Eyes White Dragon back onto my side of the field!" He chanted in Egyptian again, and Blue-Eyes once more left its place in front of Kaiba and joined Reshef, Revival Jam, and Spiria on Professor Julius's side of the field. "Now Blue-Eyes, attack Red-Eyes Black Dragon!"

Kaiba raised his arm into the air. "Attack Guidance Armor! Redirect the attack to Yugi's Kuriboh!"

A breastplate of gleaming silver armor appeared, looking wildly out of place on Kuriboh's small, round body. It drew Blue Eyes' attack toward it, causing monster and armor to explode together under the White Lightning Blast, but not causing Yugi any damage since Kuriboh had been in defense position.

Kaiba crowed in triumph. "By destroying a weak Dark Attribute monster, you've activated my Crush virus. Any monster on your side of the field or that you might have in reserve with 1500 attack points or more is infected and annihilated. Reshef is finished, Julius!"

"And not just Reshef. Revival Jam is gone as well," Yugi added.

Joey, Tristan, and Téa let out whoops of joy, Tristan and Joey high-fiving each other, while Professor Julius shrieked in outrage. Reshef shriveled into nothing, and Revival Jam sort of melted into a pool on the floor and evaporated. Blue-Eyes was also affected by the virus, despite the fact that it was only temporarily in the professor's control. She made sort of a sick wailing sound, then she, too, withered and disappeared. Spiria alone remained on his side of the field.

Joey laughed. "So much for your big plan. You got no more Reshef and nothin' but weak monsters left."

Professor Julius glared at him, seething. "And I believe it was your own teammate who pointed out that it is unwise to underestimate some so-called weak monsters." He summoned something, but it remained hidden in the shadows. The equivalent of setting a monster in facedown defense position, Yugi guessed. Then the professor pointed at them, his hand shaking slightly. "And you have also lost your most powerful monster."

A sneer curled onto Kaiba's face. "Not hardly. You forget I have three Blue-Eyes White Dragons, so I think I'll call the second one to the field." The second dragon appeared, and Kaiba immediately directed it to attack Spiria.

"And I use my Mirror Force trap to reflect the blast back onto you, destroying all monsters in attack position!"

The redirected White Lightning Blast was devastating, tearing through Blue-Eyes first, then Red-Eyes, Dark Magician Girl, and finally, Command Knight. The force of the blow hit them all like a strong windstorm, but because it was a trap effect and not battle damage, none of the duelists themselves were hurt.

As soon as the resulting squall was over, Joey held his Duel Disk in front of him like a shield. "You're not the only one who has backup monsters." He glanced at Tristan, and nodded. "I summon Swamp Battleguard!"

Tristan returned the nod. "And I summon Lava Battleguard!"

"And when both of these monsters are together on the field, they strengthen each other."

Téa held out her own duel disk. "I think I'll bring Fire Sorcerer to the party!"

Yugi narrowed his eyes, considering his options. They had to end this quickly, and without risking whatever traps Professor Julius might have at his disposal. He looked at his three friends. "I need what you each have to offer. Are you with me?"

"Always." Téa's eyes burned bright.

Joey gave him a short nod. "You know it, pal."

"We're in it together," Tristan added.

"Then I sacrifice Swamp Battleguard, Lava Battleguard, and Fire Sorcerer to summon Winged Dragon of Ra, god of Egypt!"

Yugi was bathed in warmth like the morning sun on a summer day. A yellow glow surrounded him, and he began chanting in Egyptian—the prerequisite to controlling Ra. Although he himself had never summoned Ra before, the words came to him as easily as lyrics to a familiar and well-loved nursery rhyme. He felt more than saw the giant sphere materialize over his head, then crack open, allowing blazing yellow light to illuminate the shadows around them, driving them back. When the light dimmed, returning to more normal levels, but still much brighter than before, an enormous golden dragon was hovering over them, its great wings spanning almost as far as Yugi could see in the shadows.

Yugi sighed, drained from the power it took to summon the Egyptian god. If it hadn't been for the extra life energy Atem had transferred to him, he doubted he could have managed it at all. It was like a mirror image of the Memory World, when his other self had no power left to summon Ra until Yugi had arrived and held onto his hand, giving him strength. _We were each of us only half of who we were meant to be until we came together, and now we can each claim what we got from the other. We are complete._

He took another breath to steady himself, bringing his focus back to the battle at hand. "Ra gets its strength from the monsters sacrificed to summon it. Swamp Battleguard, Lava Battleguard, Fire Sorcerer—together they have an attack strength of 5350."

"Unfortunately, your battle phase ended when you began summoning new monsters," Professor Julius said. "You can't attack."

"Not yet, but as soon as you move—"

"It will be too late!" A crazed, gleeful smile spread on the professor's face. "I reveal my hidden monster—Brain Jacker! When revealed from the shadows, Brain Jacker attaches itself to a monster on my opponents' side of the field, permanently siphoning out its will and leaving me in control!"

A hideous creature that looked like a giant, pulsating brain with a single eyestalk, two bat-like wings, and four sharp-clawed legs emerged from the shadows. It flew at Ra, attaching its talons around the dragon's head.

Téa gasped. "That can't work on a _god_, can it?"

Professor Julius threw his head back and laughed. "It can, my dear! The gods are impervious to traps, and spell effects can only last for one turn. But Ra is a unique god—its control is determined by the recitation of the Egyptian incantation." He closed his eyes, calling out the same Egyptian chant that Yugi had just uttered moments before. Ra, the revolting brain-creature still attached to it, turned itself in the air so that it now facing their side of the field in fearsome opposition.

And they had no monsters to defend themselves.

"Winged Dragon of Ra, attack the Nameless Pharaoh's vessel! Send him to the depths of the shadows where even the spirit he contained cannot reach him!"

Acting on pure reflex, Yugi threw his arm up to shield himself as Ra reared back its head, breathing out a great swath of devastating fire. Beside Yugi, Joey called out in a raspy voice, "Scapegoats, protect him!" Yugi couldn't see whether or not the four, wooly goats appeared, but he heard Joey swear. "It's too much for them!" Someone screamed Yugi's name—Téa, he was pretty sure—before the roar of the flames drowned everything else out.

And then, it just… stopped.

Yugi opened his eyes in time to see a pale, gray, serpentine creature with a head at each end shielding him from Ra's attack. The creature disintegrated under Ra's fiery breath, but it was enough to protect Yugi from any damage. A dark but cultured voice came from the shadows. "I see we've arrived just in time to join the party."


	19. Wins and Losses

**19. Wins and Losses**

Yugi's eyes widened as he turned to the source of the voice. Bakura and Marik were standing together off to the side, Bakura wearing a duel disk on his arm and a smirk on his face that made Yugi shudder. _The Spirit of the Ring!_

Professor Julius cried out in fury, but the others ignored him, gaping at Bakura and Marik. Joey blinked. "_Bakura?_ What the hell—?"

"Spiria's shield, courtesy of Diabound. A little something extra we picked up in the duel against my dear fiancée."

Throwing his head back, Joey laughed in relief. "Yes!"

Yugi was somewhat less than pleased, however. "Bakura? Are you—?"

"He's fine," Marik answered for him. "His own power, remember?"

Yugi nodded slowly, but with some reluctance. In the three years since the Spirit of the Ring had disappeared from their lives, Yugi had never once seen Bakura look so… _unrestrained_. It was disconcerting. But Bakura took a breath and offered him a smile that, while not quite his usual gentle expression, was at least somewhat less menacing. In a softer voice, he said, "We, each of us, must come to terms with who we are."

"YOU DO NOT BELONG HERE!" Professor Julius looked positively deranged, his face red with fury, and veins showing on his forehead. "YOU ARE NOT A PART OF THIS SHADOW WAR!"

Bakura leveled him an icy glare. "You attacked my lover and his family. I consider that a direct invitation to your little soirée. We are both former bearers of Millennium Items, and I am connected to the _Ka_ of Zorc himself. I go into the shadows where I please!"

"Payback's a bitch, eh _Master_?" Marik flashed a malicious grin.

Professor Julius sputtered, so enraged that he couldn't even get out a coherent string of words. Finally, he managed to gain enough control to speak in something approaching a rational way. "You are far from my only servant, Marik Ishtar! I now summon a monster that belonged to another servant, my former _tjaty_, Evan Haines. Gravekeeper's Curse, come forth, and take some of Yugi's life force!"

A malevolent human in a long, blue robe materialized beside Ra. Yugi felt something like an invisible blow to the stomach knock the wind from him, doubling him over, but only for a moment. If he remembered correctly, Gravekeeper's Curse dealt 500 points of direct damage when summoned—not enough to do him too much harm.

And now it was their turn. But what to do against an Egyptian god? And Winged Dragon of Ra no less, with over 5000 attack points? He looked to Kaiba and Joey, hoping one of them had an idea. Joey shrugged, helpless, while Kaiba ground his teeth in frustration. Even if he called his third Blue-Eyes, it wouldn't help. Yugi still had Obelisk and Slifer, but neither one of them was a match for Ra.

Professor Julius cackled with glee. "You don't have a monster strong enough to defeat Ra! Not even Slifer or Obelisk have enough strength, and Blue-Eyes White Dragon is a joke. Your most powerful weapons, all useless against me! You, who descend from the pharaohs, you cannot defeat the greatest pharaoh of them all!"

Bakura clucked his tongue. "You are so busy worrying about the kings of Egypt, you have once again failed to take into account the King of _Thieves_. I summon Diabound Colonel!"

Another pale, gray, two-headed serpent appeared on the field, and Professor Julius let out a howl that sounded something less than human. "Your Diabound was destroyed! You can't summon it again."

"On the contrary, Professor. You destroyed my Spirit Illusion, which was an exact duplicate of Diabound. This is the original. You are aware, are you not, that Diabound is able to absorb the special abilities of monsters it destroys? Perhaps you will recognize this particular skill he recently acquired."

He muttered a spell under his breath, and Yugi's eyes widened in recognition. "Reshef's effect!"

Bakura smiled, then crooked his finger at Winged Dragon of Ra. "You will kindly send the god back to us for a turn, Professor."

Joey and Tristan exchanged another round of high-fives, and Téa sagged in relief.

Professor Julius started breathing hard. "You can't control Ra without knowing the correct incantation!"

Bakura looked at Yugi. "I believe that is your cue."

Yugi smiled and began the chant, taking back control of his Egyptian god. Kaiba, meanwhile, summoned his third Blue-Eyes White Dragon to the field. "Blue-Eyes, attack Spiria with White Lightning Blast!" Spiria disappeared under the onslaught of bluish-white light.

Bakura was next. "Diabound, destroy Gravekeeper's Curse!"

This one cost Ramesses. He doubled over as the equivalent of 1000 points of damage hit him. But it wasn't enough to destroy him. Not yet.

"Your move, Yuge," Joey said, grinning in triumph.

"NO!" Professor Julius wailed in panic. "If he attacks, the shadows will destroy me! You can't do this! You, the Vessel of the Nameless Pharaoh, you are not a creature of vengeance! You cannot send me to the Shadow Realm!"

Yugi shook his head, a weariness settling over him like twilight falling. "This is not about revenge, Professor. It never has been. You sought access to the shadows because you wanted their power, but you didn't consider the price. I can't stop that now. I just want to go _home_. Me, my friends, my other self—we didn't ask to be brought to the Shadow Realm, but we have to abide by its rules. The only way out is to win, Professor. I'm sorry."

"NOOOOOOO!"

Yugi closed his eyes. "Winged Dragon of Ra, attack him directly."

He wasn't sure exactly when the screaming stopped, or what happened afterward, but the next thing he knew, he could feel cold, hard stone at his back, and he could hear voices calling their names.

"Joey? Yugi?"

"_Nii-sama_? Are you all right?"

"_Onii-chan_? Wake up!"

Yugi opened his eyes. They were back in the Ceremonial Chamber of the crypt that had once served as the Ishtar family's ancestral home. He was lying on the floor, with Téa, Joey, Tristan, and Kaiba sprawled around him. Hovering over them with anxious looks on their faces were Mai, Mokuba, and Serenity. Sara was there, too, hanging back at a distance, her hands twisting at her chest in anxiety.

Yugi sat up. "Is it over?"

"You tell me, kiddo," Mai replied. "You were there. But the shadows are gone."

"Mai?" Joey pulled himself upright, and Mai and Serenity both tackled him, almost knocking him back down again. Mokuba did the same thing to Kaiba as he struggled to get up off the floor. Then, Serenity pulled loose from Joey and grabbed Tristan in a massive bear hug.

Yugi turned to look for Téa, but she found him first and threw her arms around him, resting her chin on his shoulder. "You did it. You got us back."

He shook his head. "No, it wasn't me." He looked over his shoulder. Not far from where they were, he could see Bakura and Marik getting to their feet. "Excellent timing, guys. Thank you."

Marik smiled, but Bakura merely nodded, looking as drained as Yugi felt.

"Hey, wait a second." Joey sounded puzzled. Yugi pulled back enough from Téa to see his friend looking around the room. "Where's the—where's Atem?"

Mai looked down. "He, uh…"

Yugi sighed. "He and Seto disappeared with the shadows."

Mai's eyes were sorrowful as she nodded in confirmation.

Squeezing Yugi's hand between hers, Téa looked down, blinking away tears.

Joey's face fell. "He… I…. We didn't get a chance to say good-bye."

Yugi gave him a sad smile. "We said everything we needed to say, Joey. Besides, that's what funerals are for."

* * *

It was late afternoon by the time they got to the hospital, and Yugi rushed down the sterile white corridor, his friends somewhere behind him. Everyone but Professor Hawkins had been accounted for. Ishizu had been revived after Bakura had defeated her, and she had gone immediately to the police with Odion and Rashida to report what they knew about Professor Julius's involvement in the tomb desecrations and the thefts from a year ago. The rest of them were all together at the Ishtar's ancestral home, awake and fine with no one controlling them or pulling any puppet strings.

Professor Julius hadn't fared as well. The police found him at his villa, conscious but completely out of his mind. They'd already taken him into custody by the time Yugi talked to Ishizu on the phone, and they wanted to speak with Yugi, Marik, Bakura, and Sara, so they all took a detour to the police station before heading over to the hospital. Yugi hadn't been able to get a hold of Rebecca, Duke, or his grandfather on their cells, so he'd sat twitching in impatience through the seemingly endless police interviews until they could leave and go see for themselves whether or not the professor, like the others, was awake and well.

Yugi rounded a corner and skidded to a stop as he saw his grandfather and Duke sitting in chairs in a small alcove just outside Professor Hawkins' room. Yugi looked from one to the other. "How's Professor Hawkins? Did he wake up?"

Grandpa nodded, and Yugi sagged in relief, Téa beside him, squeezing his shoulder. But then, he noticed that his grandfather didn't seem to share his happiness; in fact, he looked rather grim.

Yugi frowned. "Grandpa?"

His grandfather just nodded his head toward the door. "Rebecca's in with him. You should go see her."

Alarmed, Yugi went into the room. Mokuba followed, but the rest of their friends lingered at the door. Rebecca was sitting at her grandfather's bedside, nodding as the professor chatted with her in an animated way. Yugi's frown deepened in confusion as he looked at the scene. The professor seemed fine….

Rebecca looked up at him, her eyes pinched and sad. "Hi, Yugi."

"Hey, Rebecca. How's—?"

Professor Hawkins looked up at him, cocking his head as if puzzled. "Richard? Is that you? What happened to your hair?"

"No, Grandpa, it's Yugi," Rebecca said, a strange weariness to her voice. "Yugi Mutou. He's your student."

He smiled at her. "Yes, of course, Elizabeth." He patted her hand. "You're right, of course. You're such a sweet girl. I'm so glad my Richard married you."

Yugi's heart squeezed in his chest as Rebecca just nodded and patted her grandfather's hand in return. "I know, Grandpa."

"I'm tired, Elizabeth. I think I need to rest."

Rebecca nodded, and Professor Hawkins settled down into the bed, closing his eyes.

"Elizabeth?" Yugi asked when it looked like the professor had drifted off.

Rebecca looked up at him. "My mother. Richard was my father. He… he doesn't know… he doesn't remember…." She closed her eyes, leaning back in her seat. Mokuba brushed past Yugi and joined her at her seat, putting his arms around her. She leaned into him with a weary sigh.

Yugi's grandfather came up behind him and put a hand on his shoulder. "Arthur woke up a little bit ago, but he didn't seem to know where—or when—he was. He keeps calling Rebecca by her mother's name. The doctors think 'whatever it was' that happened to him somehow advanced his Alzheimer's."

Yugi swallowed. "B-but they can do something, right? He'll be okay?"

Grandpa shook his head. "They don't really know, but they're not holding out much hope. Once a patient is at this level of dementia, there usually is no going back."

"But this isn't just a regular disease! It was because of the Shadow Realm!" His eyes widened as a thought occurred to him. "That makes it _magical_. Serenity can use Mystical Elf…"

Before Grandpa could stop him, Yugi ducked around him and back out into the hallway where the others were getting the story from Duke. "Serenity! Can you get Mystical Elf to help him?"

Serenity blinked. "Here? In a hospital?"

"He's in a private room. I'm sure we can get the doctors to let us alone with him, just for a few minutes. This happened because he was in the Shadow Realm, so Mystical Elf can heal him. She healed me, the other me, the other Seto…."

Serenity frowned. "I can try, Yugi."

"Are you sure you're up to it?" Joey asked.

She nodded. "At least I can look at him."

She followed Yugi into Professor Hawkins' room, Joey and Tristan behind her. The three men stayed near the doorway with Yugi's grandpa while Serenity continued on to stand behind Rebecca and put her hand on the younger girl's arm. "How you holding up?"

Rebecca sniffed. "Okay, I guess."

"Can I look at him?"

Rebecca nodded and stood up, she and Mokuba moving aside so Serenity could have her seat. With gentle hands, Serenity lightly touched his forehead, brushed a hand on his cheek, then felt for his pulse at his neck. At last, she put her hands on his chest and closed her eyes. She sat that way for what seemed to Yugi like hours, but was probably only a moment. When she opened her eyes, she looked to Rebecca first, her eyes wide and sad. "I don't think I can do anything, Rebecca. There's no sense of the Shadow Realm or anything weird. I think…." She took a deep breath. "I'm so sorry."

"No!" Yugi shook his head. "No, there has to be something. We _won_. We're supposed to get him _back_!"

Serenity looked up at him. "He is back, Yugi. That's just it. We got him back, but Duke said he already had Alzheimer's…."

"No!" Yugi turned on his heel and pushed past Joey and Tristan to get out into the hallway.

"Yugi?" Téa asked, but he kept going, past her, past all of them, until he found a waiting room that was empty. He stopped short, unsure what to do next. He wanted to punch the wall, or kick a chair, or something. It wasn't _fair_! They'd _won_!

"Yugi."

Yugi spun around to see his grandfather coming into the waiting area. "Grandpa, I don't wanna—"

"This isn't about you, young man." His tone was lightly admonishing. "Rebecca needs you right now. You're the closest thing she has left to family, other than a pair of grandparents she doesn't get along with."

Yugi squeezed his eyes shut, not wanting to think about the implications. Rebecca was only fourteen, and Professor Hawkins hadn't arranged for her emancipation yet.

"Yugi…." Grandpa stepped closer to him, putting his hands on his shoulders.

"It's not fair, Grandpa!" Yugi clenched his fists, resisting the urge to pound his grandfather's chest with them. "We _won the duel_. When we win, everybody comes back! That's how it's supposed to _work_! Professor Hawkins, he… I… I can't…" He kept hearing the professor's voice in his head. _Yes, of course, Elizabeth. You're right, of course. You're such a sweet girl. I'm so glad my Richard married you._ "It's not FAIR!" Yugi cried out again in anguish, collapsing against his grandfather.

He felt strong arms wrap around him, supporting him. After a moment, when he'd calmed down a bit, his grandfather pushed back from him, gripping his shoulders tightly. "Look at me, Yugi."

Yugi opened his eyes. His grandfather's expression was firm, but gentle. "Whoever said life was fair? It's easy to be a hero when you always win, Yugi. It's in how you handle the losses—the _big_ losses, the ones that matter—that makes a real hero. You can't always fix everything and make it right, but you can be there for Rebecca and help her pick up the pieces. You can be strong for her. You can help her fight if her other grandparents try to take her away. These are the battles you still have before you. Can you be a real hero now? For her?"

Yugi closed his eyes again and lowered his head, ashamed. "Yes, Grandpa. You're right. I'm sorry."

"That's my boy." Grandpa embraced him in another tight hug, then stepped away. With a friendly shove at his back, he sent Yugi in the direction of the professor's room. "Go on. Go see how she's doing. Go be her friend—her family."

Yugi nodded and headed back, clamping down on the anger and frustration that still flooded his chest like bile. Everyone was clustered in the hallway except Rebecca, Duke, and Mokuba.

"You all right?" Téa asked as he approached them.

He took a breath. "Yeah. I just… I've gotta be there for Rebecca now."

Téa nodded and moved aside so he could go into the room. Professor Hawkins was still asleep, with Rebecca sitting in the chair at his bedside. Duke stood behind her, his hands on her shoulders, and Mokuba had dragged another chair next to her and was holding her hand.

Yugi stopped in the doorway, feeling awkward. What could he _say_ to her? Shuffling his feet a moment, he finally found his voice. "You okay, Rebecca?"

She looked up at him, her face still drawn. He'd never seen her look so numb, not even when they'd first found her grandfather unconscious. "I don't know."

"I'm so sorry, Rebecca. I'm sorry we can't do anything to help him." Yugi swallowed again over the lump forming in his throat. "But I want you to know I'm here for you. Always. You will always be my _Imouto-chan_, my little sister. I'll take care of you, no matter what."

She looked at him a moment, and then something in her seemed to break. She started crying—not sniffles or tears welling up in her eyes, but great, heaving sobs, like water bursting through a dam. In a single motion she was up from her seat and had brushed past Mokuba to throw herself at Yugi, almost knocking him back out into the hallway as she wrapped her arms around him and wept into his shoulder. He squeezed her, stroking her hair. "Shhh. It's gonna be okay."

"How can it be okay, Yugi? He's… he's…" She gripped him tightly as she tried to catch her breath. "He's all I _have_."

"No. No he isn't. We're family, Rebecca. And I promise you, I will help you get through this."

"We all will, Becks." Duke came up to them, his arms snaking around both of them as he rested his forehead on the top of Rebecca's head. "We're all family."

Mokuba latched onto them on the other side. "Me, too. Whatever you need."

"Is this a private party, or can we all join in?"

Yugi looked over his shoulder and saw Téa just behind him in the hallway, her eyes glassy. Joey, Tristan, Serenity, Mai, and Yugi's grandfather were gathered close as well. Kaiba and Sara hung back at more of a distance.

Rebecca looked up, her face wet and her eyes puffy. She offered Téa a small smile and nodded before bursting into tears again. Téa joined the group hug from behind Yugi. Then Joey and Serenity, Tristan, Mai, and finally Yugi's grandfather pressed in, until Rebecca and Yugi were the center of a huge mass of people holding onto them tightly.

One family, mourning the loss of one of their own.

* * *

_To be concluded in Part V: End Phase…_


End file.
